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International press conferences at the best of times tend to be mundane, by the numbers affairs filled with platitudes by the key figures within the national side. Not much changes when it comes to conferences prior to World Cup qualifiers, or even the finals itself, but within the words always lies a common train of thought: There are few, if any greater honours in football than representing your country at the World Cup.

England press conferences are laced with references to qualification, how much being at the World Cup means to the players and what winning the trophy would mean to their careers. The same reverence for the competition can be found in the words of any major national side, so for the smaller nations, imagine the honour of being one of the 32 teams going to the finals.

The role played by the lesser nations in World Cup finals down the years has been one of the factors which has helped the competition reach such a status in the minds of players and fans alike. Think about the likes of North Korea in 1966, Bulgaria in 1994 and Senegal in 2002, all three, along with many others, have left a mark on the finals which remains in the national and international consciousness to this day.

In the build-up to the critical juncture for sides still harbouring ambitions of following in their footsteps by qualifying for South Africa in 2010, this article takes a look at some of the other sides in international football looking to make the finals. Some will be more familiar than others, some have already left their mark on the finals in years gone by, while others are looking to secure their place for the very first time. But irrespective of the history, the ambition remains the same amongst these sides as it does in the major nations: represent your country at the World Cup.

Africa

5 sides will join South Africa in the finals on the home continent, with Ghana looking fairly assured of their place in the finals going into this weekend’s fixtures. Group 2 also looks to be a straight fight between Tunisia and Nigeria for the qualifying berth, while the Ivory Coast also appear to be headed for their second straight finals. The Elephants will all but secure qualification with a win at home today, but they need to overcome Burkina Faso, second in the group, three points behind the Ivory Coast with three games left.

Les Etalons are no strangers to the final round of African qualifying, but this represents their first real opportunity to make the finals, after securing wins away in Malawi and a surprise 4-2 win in the Burkinase capital of Ouagadougou against Guinea. Defeat against the Ivory Coast put a severe dent in their ambitions to make the finals, and defeat in Abidjan this afternoon will all but extinguish their hopes, but they will hope to replicate the kind of performances which have taken them to this stage, which include going unbeaten in the previous stage of qualifying in a group including Tunisia. If the Stallions want to put themselves back in with a shout of qualifying, they will need to rely heavily on the influence of Hamburg’s Jonathan Pitropia in midfield, along with CFR Cluj’s Yssouf Kone up front. At best, it seems a long shot for Burkina Faso, but to still be in with a shout at this stage represents significant progress for a side who haven’t come close to qualifying for the finals previously.

In with a far better shout are the somewhat more familiar name of Algeria, who have their own place in World Cup history for both the right and wrong reasons. The Desert Foxes made the finals in both 1982 and 1986, defeating eventual finalists West Germany 2-1 in their opening match of the former, which remains one of the major shocks in finals history. However, the Algerians were then the victims of the infamous agreement between the West Germans and Austrians in the final match of the group, which allowed both sides to advance to the second phase as a consequence of a 1-0 victory for the West Germans. The fix sparked international outrage, but ultimately little was done to help the Algerians, with a revision of the scheduling for the final group matches the end result of the shambolic events. Algeria never reached such a stage again, a draw against Northern Ireland in Mexico four years later proving to be their only point of the group.

Since then, qualifying for the World Cup has been a mixture of near misses (defeat over two legs against Egypt denying them a place at Italia 90) and humiliation (Defeat to Kenya over two legs in the opening stage of qualification for France 98). In the period, they also managed to win their first and only African Cup of Nations on home soil in 1990, but Algeria have toiled somewhat since that famous day in Gijon 27 years ago.

Now they probably find themselves two wins away from the World Cup finals, with home fixtures agaisnt Zambia and Rwanda coming up, which should allow them to further increase their advantage in goal difference over the Egyptians before their potentially deciding contest in Cairo on the 14th November. If the Algerians manage to win their next two games, then chances are they will go to the Egyptian capital with a near unassailable goal difference, along with a three-point lead over the reigning African Cup of Nations champions, making qualification all but guaranteed. With a couple of familiar names within their ranks, such as Portsmouth’s Nadir Belhadj, Blackpool’s Hamuer Bouazza and Hull’s new recruit Kamil Ghilas, along with lynchpin Karim Ziani, currently playing for Bundesliga champions Wolfsburg, things are looking good for the Algerians in their bid to make the finals for the first time in 24 years.

Perhaps the side with the greatest chance of upsetting the odds however is Gabon, with the national side’s progress on the pitch reflecting the prosperity the country is experiencing off it. The Black Panthers’ progress since their first attempt to qualify for the finals in 1990 has been marked, going from relative also-rans up to now, where they still face a difficult task in qualifying top of Group A, but after wins in Morocco and at home to Togo, they find themselves two points clear of the latter with a game in hand to come. Four points over their next two games, home and away to Cameroon, should put them in a commanding position on top of the group ahead of a visit to Togo in October, with a home tie in Libraville against Morocco to finish their campaign.

Save for three African Cup of Nations appearances (With a fourth guaranteed due to their co-hosting with Equatorial Guinea in 2012), Gabon have largely failed to leave an impact upon African football since their introduction nearly 50 years ago. Now, with former French international Alain Giresse at the helm, and Hull’s Daniel Cousin spearheading the attack, the Azingo Nationale could be about to upset the odds, after starting out their group percieved as the weakest and least experienced of the quartet looking to secure top spot. Of all the three ‘outsiders’ in with a genuine shout of qualification, Gabon probably represent the best chance of success, along with one of the more interesting stories, given the relatively unheralded nature of the team.

Asia

Qualification for the Asian nations has been all but concluded, with Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Australia (despite their tenous claims to Asian residency) making up four of the potential five sides from Asia who can make it to South Africa next year. One spot remains available to the AFC however, with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain due to contest a play-off for 5th place, with the first leg in Riffa later, with the return in Riyadh on Wednesday, the winner going on to play New Zealand for a place in the finals.

For Al-Ahmar, who will start as underdogs against the experienced Saudi Arabians, victory would provide them with a fantastic opportunity to make the finals and finally break through into the ranks of the top Asian teams, after years of threatening to make the step up. Thus far, Bahrain’s international history has been littered with near-misses, casting themselves as the bridesmaids of the Asian Federation.

Three times the Reds have finished as runners up in the Gulf Cup of Nations since the inaugural competition in 1970. Twice they have been defeated in the final of the Arab Nations Cup since 1985. Their record in the Asian Cup was unremarkable for many years, prior to the 2004 edition in China, where the Bahrainis twice led against Japan in the semi-finals, only to concede a stoppage time equaliser and go down 4-3 after extra time, eventually finishing 4th overall.

Probably the biggest disappointment came four years ago in qualification for the last World Cup, where a play-off victory over Uzbekistan took them into a two-legged qualifier against Trinidad and Tobago, with the winner going to Germany. A 1-0 defeat away in the first leg was recovered by half-time in the return leg in Manama, before Dennis Lawrence ended the Gulf state’s hopes of making the final with the crucial away goal, The Soca Warriors winning the tie 2-1 on aggregate. Now, Bahrain potentially find themselves two wins away from their debut appearance at the finals, but with plenty of work to do to overcome the Saudi Arabians in the first instance, they could be in for another disappointment, it will be up to star turn Mahmood ‘Ringo’ Abdulrahman to upset the Saudi Arabians and take Bahrain to the brink of qualification for South Africa.

Europe

With 13 places at stake, and only the Netherlands thus far qualified for the finals, Europe remains the most open of all the continental qualifying zones. Expect to see the Dutch joined over the next few days by the likes of Germany, Spain and England over the next few days, but otherwise the groups remain open, with a few old names and new sides making an impact in their bid to make it to South Africa next June.

Hungary are probably the most notable of the ‘outsiders’ looking to make it to the finals, with a track record in international football that matches up to most, however it has been a long time since they had their moment in the spotlight. Along with the Dutch finalists of 1974 and ’78 and Brazil’s 1950 runners-up, Hungary’s ‘Magical Magyars’ of 1954 probably represent one of the greatest teams to play at the World Cup who failed to come away with the title.With the likes of Sandor Kocsis, Nandor Hidegkuti and Ferenc Puskas in their ranks, the Hungarians went on an unbeaten run of 32 games, spanning over 4 years, all the way to the final, where they fell victim to the ‘Miracle of Berne’, losing to a West German side who they had defeated 8-3 in the group stages a fortnight earlier. Combined with their defeat to the Italians after extra time in the 1934 final, the Hungarians, much like the Bahrainis, have the feel of a nearly-side, although on a far grander scale.

Since the heady days of the 50′s, Hungarian football has gradually declined from World Cup finals, European Championship semi-finals in 1964 and 1972, and Honved’s status as one of the greatest European club teams, to no World Cup appearances in 23 years, no European Championship finals in 37 years, and the nadir of a 2-1 defeat to Malta in qualification for Euro 2008. Since that infamous night nearly three years ago, Hungarian football has been undergoing something of a renaissance at club and international level, although the Magyars still face an uphill battle to follow in the footsteps of domestic champions Debrecni in breaking the glass ceiling of qualification for the Champions’ League group stages.

Wins over Albania, Malta and a draw at home to Denmark have put the Hungarians in a good position to at least make the play-offs through Group 1, exploiting the slip-ups by favourites Portugal and Sweden thus far. With four games to go, the Magyars still face home and away fixtures against Portugal, a trip to Copenhagen to face the group leaders and a crucial tie at home to Sweden this evening, looking to avenge their only defeat thus far, 2-1 at the Rasunda Stadium. With an in-form Denmark still to host Portugal and Sweden, a few positive results for the Hungarians should see them into the play-offs, a few other positive results may even see them qualify automatically, heralding a remarkable return to form after a long barren spell. You get the impression that while their resurgence may be stopped in it’s tracks were they to make it to the finals, a return to the main stage for the Hungarians may provide a point of interest, even if it comes at the expense of the prescence of Cristiano Ronaldo or Zlatan Ibrahimovic in Africa.

Group 3 remains wide open, with five sides still potentially in with a shout of making it to the play-offs or qualifying automatically, with Slovenia, Poland and the Czech Republic looking to build upon recent visits to the finals. For Slovakia and Northern Ireland however, filling the top two spots in the group at this late stage represents something new in the first instance, and a welcome return to form for the Northern Irish.

Formed out of the Czechoslovakian split in 1993, the Slovakians have on a number of occasions threatened to make an impression in qualifying, none more so than in making the play-offs for the first time in a major competition four years ago, before going down to a rampant Spain over two legs. Their current situation undoubtedly presents their greatest opportunity to date however, with the Slovakians going on a remarkable run of form over the last two years.

The Repre have only managed draws with Hungary and Iceland in their last nine friendlies, with defeats to the Icelandics and away to Cyprus in amongst the seven defeats. However, their six matches in qualification have produced 5 wins and only one defeat, away to Slovenia almost a year ago. With victories in Prague against the Czechs, along with home wins against fellow group rivals Poland and Northern Ireland, the Slovaks find themselves two points ahead of the chasing pack, with a game in hand over the Northern Irish and Slovenians.

With renowned talent throughout the side, such as Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel, Napoli’s Marek Hamsik and leading goalscorer Stanislav Sestak, Slovakia certainly have what it takes to pick up the necessary points from their remaining four matches to make their inaugural appearance at the finals, and trouble a few teams if and when they reach that stage.

The Northern Irish probably present the greatest threat to the Slovakians chances of finishing top of Group 3. For Nigel Worthington’s men, to even be at this stage given their position only a few years ago marks them out as possibly the most improved side in Europe over recent years. Qualification for Euro 2004 saw the Northern Irish finish rock bottom of group 6, home and away defeats to Armenia being one of the lowest moments in international history for a side famed for their exploits in knocking out the hosts against the odds at the World Cup in 1982. Ranked 45th out of 52 UEFA nations, scoring a goal to end a 1,298 minute drought in a 4-1 defeat to Norway sparked embarrasingly jubilant celebration amongst the Windsor Park faithful during a friendly in February 2004. Little were we to know at the time that would be the catalyst for the Wee Nation’s stunning revival.

Wins followed. Qualifying wins followed. Qualification wins against Denmark, Spain, England followed. Northern Ireland became competitive again. Windsor Park became a fortress. Windsor Park remains a fortress, thus far unbreached in this qualifying campaign. Suddenly, the momentum has led to the point where the team finds itself in the best position to secure a play-off spot, with a two-point advantage over Slovenia and three over Poland, but having played a game more. In order to all but secure their spot in the play-offs, the Northern Irish must build upon a poor away record with positive results in Chorzow today and in concluding their campaign in the Czech Republic a month from now. With a visit by leaders Slovakia sandwiched in between, five points should see Northern Ireland into the play-offs and given them a genuine shout of making the finals for the first time since 1986. Nine points, and the resurgence for one of Europe’s trickier outfits will be complete.

A side quickly establishing a similar reputation for itself in UEFA are the relative newcomers Bosnia-Herzegovina, currently second in Group 6, behind European champions Spain, with the focus upon retaining their play-off spot, with a four-point gap to nearest rivals Turkey. The Bosnians, much like Slovakia, came into being in 1993 and have since then developed into a side shot through with talented players, forming a cohesive unit backed by fervent support which has made visits to Sarajevo and Zenica tricky for any side, 3 defeats in 12 years and 17 World Cup qualifiers in Bosnia telling their own story.

One goal away from qualification for Euro 2004, clearly the Balkan nation are a side who have the knack for qualification campaigns, a trait which should eventually see them rewarded with a trip to a major finals. Now may be the moment for them, with Turkey stuttering badly and Belgium a former shadow of themselves, evidence coming in their 2-1 defeat in Zenica in April, off the back of a stunning 4-2 win in Genk for the Bosnians four days earlier. The double against such famous opposition has put them in great shape, ahead of a visit to Armenia later on, with Turkey and Spain still to make the trip to Southern Europe. Led by sought-after Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko, with support in the shape of Lyon starlet Miralem Pjanic and Hoffenheim’s recovering marksman Vedad Ibisevic, Bosnia should at least secure themselves a play-off position given their run of fixtures remaining in the group, a two-legged tie no-one will fancy, especially given the daunting task of having to get something positive from an away day in Sarajevo or Zenica.

North America

By and large, it’s a case of the usual suspects in the final round of CONCACAF qualifying, with three of the top four spots in almost certain to be filled by the United States, Costa Rica and Mexico, with the fourth placed side in the group advancing to a two-legged play-off against fifth place from the South American equivalent. Looking to disrupt the established order of the last two qualifying campaigns are Honduras, who are beginning to convert their long-held promise into tangible results, with World Cup qualification beckoning for La Bicolor.

The Hondurans aren’t complete strangers to success, with one finals appearance to their name, making a decent account of themselves in Group 5 during Espana ’82, coming off the back of a CONCACAF title (The prelude to the Gold Cup) a year earlier. Combined with two UNCAF championships in the early 1990′s, as the best side in the Central Americas region, Honduras have a decent track record of success by comparative standards in the North American region. Since their second UNCAF title in 1993 though, results have been patchy for Los Catrachos. Near misses, such as with qualifying for Japan/Korea in 2002 and finishing 3rd in the 2001 Copa America have been followed up with bad campaigns in attempting to make the finals in 1998 and 2006.

They have maintained good form all the way throughout their qualifying run up to this stage in a bid to make South Africa, and with a perfect record from three home games thus far in the final group, coupled with a draw away to 2006 finalists Trinidad and Tobago, the Hondurans have 10 points from 6 games, leading the United States by virtue of goal difference, one point clear of 4th placed Mexico. With four games remaining, including a visit to Mexico and hosting the USA, Honduras are not yet guaranteed a place in South Africa, but the signs look good. With a young side finding places within important European and world clubs (Wilson Palacios at Spurs, Ramon Nunez at Cruz Azul and David Suazo still at Inter Milan), Honduras are slowly beginning to make their prescence felt on the world stage. Qualification for South Africa next year may give this burgeoning side a chance to test their mettle against the best there is, and see how far they have improved from the inconsistent unit which characterised the last two decades for the Hondurans.

Oceania

The defection of Australia to the Asian confederation has opened the door for New Zealand to assume dominance of a confederation painfully thin on competition. Typically, the All Whites’ World Cup campaign would be long ended by now, given the sheer dominance of the Socceroos over many years in the OFC, a domination only broken once, when the New Zealanders advanced to the World Cup finals in Mexico 23 years ago, only to be hammered by the Scots, Soviets and Brazilians en route to bottom place in their group. The low point for the national side came only five years ago, when the Solomon Islands finished second in the final OFC phase of qualifying, pipping New Zealand to the right to being beaten by Australia in the final play-off.

The departure of the Australians to Asian qualifying has given New Zealand their opportunity, one seized, along with the OFC Nations Cup last year, topping a group including New Caledonia, Fiji and Vanuatu, guaranteeing themselves a play-off against either Bahrain or Saudi Arabia for the right to go to South Africa. Victory in the continental competition gave us a chance to see the New Zealanders in action at the Confederations Cup held as a dry run for the finals in June/July. Unfortunately, there was little promise shown throughout the All Whites’ three group games, unsurprisingly being on the recieving end of a drubbing by Spain, followed by lifeless performances in losing to the hosts, and getting a point against an equally uninspiring Iraq team. As a warm-up for the serious business of the two-legged play-off to come in October and November, it was not promising for the New Zealanders.

It would be wrong to be entirely negative however, as worse sides have gone to the World Cup in years gone by (A hopelessly out of depth Zaire in 1978 and an equally bad El Salvador in 1986) and worse sides will probably go to the World Cup in the future. For New Zealand, to even be at this stage can only be a positive experience, and two positive results are all that stand between them and a prestigious spot in the finals, an achievable target, especially if the likes of Blackburn’s Ryan Nelsen, Celtic Chris Killen and San Jose Earthquakes’ Simon Elliott are on form. Beyond the qualification process, you fear for what damage could be inflicted to this New Zealand side if paired up against a serious contender, but when you relate back to the concept of the honour in representing your nation at the World Cup finals, such worries can be negated somewhat.

South Africa

With the focus firmly on the twin powers of Brazil and Argentina, particularly with the latter’s struggles to qualify for the finals, every other contender for one of the top four automatic spots, or the 5th place which will take them into a play-off against the fourth placed side from North America, has been allowed to progress through qualifying without much focus on their performance. Clearly this has helped Chile in their bid to return to the finals for the first time since France ’98, with their impressive results which have taken them to the brink of qualification relatively unheralded amongst the South American media.

With four games remaining in the group, La Roja find themselves six points clear of Ecuador in 5th place. With two wins this week, tonight against a struggling Venezuelan team in Santiago and away to Bolivia on Wednesday, Chile will all but guarantee qualification for the finals, a reward for their brand of attractive football pursued under Argentinean Marcelo Bielsa since he took the job in 2007. It will signal a return to the finals for a Chilean team with a chequered history in the competition, famous more for their anecdotal history and low points rather than their performances in the competition.

A run to the semi-finals on home soil in 1962, made famous by the oft-repeated story about beating teams after eating or drinking steretypical food or drink from their country, was marred by the ‘Battle of Santiago’, when their match against Italy descended into an all-out brawl, defined as the “most stupid, appalling, disgusting and disgraceful exhibition in football.” Combined with the ban the Chileans recieved from trying to qualify for USA ’94 after goalkeeper Roberto Rojas cut himself with a blade to make it seem as if he had been hit by a missile from the Brazilian crowd behind him during a crucial Italia ’90 qualifier, and Chile’s record of one semi-final, one second round finish and four other first round appearances soon pale into comparison.

This time around, Chile have the potential to make the headlines for the right reasons. Gone are the twin towers of Marcelo Salas and Ivan Zamorano leading the line for the Chileans, replaced by players of lesser calibre, but who have collectively unified to produce a strong team, accounting for Argentina, Paraguay and Colombia throughout the qualifying process. Although unremarkable talents on their own, the likes of Boca Juniors midfielder Gary Medel, Sporting Lisbon winger Matias Fernandez and Monterrey striker Humerto Suazo have all contributed to put Chile on the verge of making it back to the finals. Come South Africa, they will hope to make the headlines for all the right reasons.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Here comes the second ‘Blue Revolution’. Manchester City’s new found riches have seen them overtake the rest of the Premier League in terms of financial clout, with a few optimistic punters also believing they may overtake the rest on the pitch come next season.

While the thinking may be premature at best, City have certainly given the traditional ‘Big Four’ something else to think about, given the £80 million outlay by Mark Hughes already this summer which includes buying Aston Villa’s Gareth Barry and nabbing Carlos Tevez from the other half of Manchester.

The common consensus points towards Arsenal being the victims of City’s new wealth, with fans, pundits and players alike suggesting that City now have the potential to break the stranglehold of the established quartet in the Premier League.

Key to the belief in a possible ‘changing of the guard’ lies with City’s signing of Emmanuel Adebayor from the Gunners last Saturday, a move which may please Arsenal fans tired of the striker’s constant ‘come and get me’ pleas from any interested club, but a move which also deprives them of their top scorer since the departure of Thierry Henry to Barcelona in the summer of 2007.

With Arsene Wenger also failing to reinforce up front (or for that matter anywhere barring centre-back) at the time of writing, some fans are beginning to become jittery about the ability of the club to maintain their grip on a top 4 spot in the Premiership, a position already challenged in recent years by a Spurs side who played lights out for 37 games of the 2005/06 season, and a talented but ultimately thin Aston Villa squad who ran out of steam from February onwards in the last campaign.

Thanks to Sheikh Mansoor’s money, City will not have the same issues about ability or squad depth (It remains to be seen if Arabian oil money has found a cure for lasagne-inspired sickness) which ultimately denied both Spurs and Villa in their bids to break up the ‘Big Four’.

All seemingly doom and gloom for Arsenal fans then. However, writing any Arsenal side off at any point is a dangerous game. We are probably not talking about a side capable of taking the title in the upcoming season, because last season the top three pushed further away from the Gunners, while the summer has seen a relative lack of action in the transfer market from all of the top four clubs.

However, this remains an Arsenal side who, across the entire squad, are stronger than Manchester City or any other potential rivals for that illustrious 4th place. Up front, City now have the strongest compliment of strikers in the league, but this cannot compensate for a questionable defence and a capable but inferior midfield when compared with the ‘Big Four’, including Wenger’s Gunners.

Away from a direct comparison with the Eastlands outfit, a look through the players on the books at Arsenal still provides a list of names which would fit into any Premier League side, and a squad which, while weaker than those of previous Wenger sides who became used to trophies and titles, still has more than enough potential within it to maintain their hold on a Top 4 spot in the coming season.

Any side who can boast players such as Cesc Fabregas, Andriy Arshavin and Robin Van Persie in their ranks should deserve respect from any opponents, and even then the players of a slightly lesser standard would still merit a place in most top European clubs.

The likes of Manuel Almunia, Kolo Toure, William Gallas, Gael Clichy, Bacari Sagna, Abou Diaby, Tomas Rosicky and Eduardo are all classy individuals, supported ably by young talents such as Kieran Gibbs, Armand Traore, Abou Diaby, Aaron Ramsay, Samir Nasri (Although as of this morning out of action for the forseeable future), Jack Wilshere, Theo Walcott and Carlos Vela. It still remains a fairly formiddable list of talent running through the Arsenal squad, perhaps not of the same standard of the three clubs above them last season, but still more than a match for any of the 16 clubs below them, significant investment or otherwise.

Wenger’s transfer policy may have irritated plenty of Arsenal fans in recent seasons, with the failure to attract star names like the other top clubs in England, but January’s signing of Arshavin represented a step in the right direction, proving the London club can still attract players of worldwide repute who can make a significant impact upon the standard of football. Arshavin’s arrival at the start of the year inspired the Gunners to an improved standard on the pitch which eventually saw them catch the previously surging Villa and eventually secure 4th place with ease from the other challengers. The capture of Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax should also help to improve the team, giving Wenger another option at centre-back to compliment the very talented, although recently questionable pairing of Toure and Gallas.

If is always the operative word when it comes to Arsenal’s summer dealing, but if Wenger can land some of his rumoured targets before the start of the season, then it won’t take much for Arsenal to build a team potentially capable of at least chasing down a Chelsea side thus far more concerned with holding onto their biggest names rather than adding to them, as we have becomed used to from the Stamford Bridge club in recent years.

Signing one or more of Marouane Chamakh, joint top scorer in a Bordeaux side who claimed Ligue 1 last season, Sebastian Bassong, one of very few players to come out of Newcastle’s dismal season with credit, or Miguel Veloso, one of the catalysts for Sporting Lisbon’s run to the Last 16 of the Champions’ League last season would provide Wenger with even more talented individuals to choose from in picking a starting XI. Although at the moment Arsenal are dormant, there is still plenty of time for Wenger to woo one or more of his targets to the Emirates before the season begins.

Finally, no study of Arsenal’s strengths would be complete without a mention of the young players rising through the ranks at the academy. The likes of Clichy, Fabregas and Van Persie all honed their skills in some part at the club before becoming first team fixtures, with plenty of others, especially Ramsay, Wilshere and Vela also seemingly on the cusp of big things.

Add to this a youth squad who last season won the Under 18 League and Cup double (Defeating Manchester City in the semi-finals of both competitions) and you have the makings of future Premier League stars at the Emirates. For all City’s riches, they are probably unable to recreate the same structure within the club which has seen Arsenal develop talents such as Vieira, Henry and Cole under the tutelage of Wenger and the youth staff.

Manchester City represent the greatest threat to Arsenal’s long-term hold on a top 4 spot in the Premier League. We are talking about a City side dealing in unlimited reserves of money, prising away quality players from top clubs, notwithstanding Adebayor from Arsenal. In turn, Arsenal are a shadow of the club who became only the second side ever to go through an English league campaign unbeaten five years ago, with a squad ravaged by injury now also hurt by defection.

The facts about both clubs are undeniable, however Arsenal still remain the favourites amongst many fans, pundits and bookies to maintain their position in the Top 4 for next season. The struggle will undoubtedly become greater as the impact of City’s riches becomes greater if the funding continues for seasons to come, but for now, there is still plenty of ability throughout this Arsenal side which should allow them to at least compete with, and better Manchester City in the upcoming season. The ‘Blue Revolution’ may have to wait for a while yet

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

It’s been a good month for Chelsea and Luiz Felipe Scolari. 

The new manager of the Blues has overseen a successful preseason campaign including a morale-boosting 19 goals in 5 matches, while off the pitch Felipao has brought in Deco as the club’s second signing of the summer behind Jose Bosingwa, whilst also seemingly retaining the services of Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba for another season at least.

Many fans and pundits will now have the Blues down as the most likely challengers to end Manchester United’s domestic and European reigns in the coming season. All things told, it’s been a pretty perfect start to life in the dugout at the Bridge for ‘Big Phil’.

However, as ever in such apparently perfect conditions, there is an issue that will be giving Scolari some concern in the lead-up to Chelsea’s opener at home to Portsmouth in 10 days time. With the announcement on Monday that Didier Drogba will miss the beginning of the season, it leaves the manager with something of a striker crisis for the game against the FA Cup holders.

Salomon Kalou is also unavailable, as he will be in Beijing playing for the Ivory Coast, Ben Sahar will be on the opposite bench as an ineligible loanee, while Scott Sinclair appears to be the forgotten man at the club. Overall, it leaves Scolari with the options for the opening day of Nicolas Anelka, the mercurial Frenchman, Franco Di Santo, the young Argentinean, and Andriy Shevchenko, the £30 million flop.

Most interesting is Shevchenko’s situation however, as in the aftermath of the Blues’ defeat on penalties to Lokomotiv Moscow last weekend (Shevchenko missed a spot-kick), Scolari declared that the striker was not in his plans for the opening fixtures, a clear statement of intent regarding the player’s future under the new head coach.

While it’s hard to pick holes in the job Scolari’s done at Chelsea thus far, consigning Shevchenko to the bench may well be the Brazilian’s first real error of judgment, as a run of games may well be what the Ukrainian needs to find something approaching the form that had rival fans fearing his arrival when he joined the Blues two summers ago.

Objectivity in matters such as these is important, so a few key questions to consider:

Has Andriy Shevchenko failed to live up to his £30 million price tag? Yes.

Is Shevchenko still the player that bagged 187 goals in 325 club appearances before joining Chelsea? No.

Are there better options up front for Chelsea than Shevchenko? Yes, immediately Drogba and Anelka, the other alternatives can be debated.

However, with all that in mind, Scolari should at least consider the possibility of giving Shevchenko a few games until his other big names up front return. Until then, ‘Big Phil’ is relying upon a talented but tempestuous Anelka, alongside a raw Di Santo, whilst also pinning his hopes upon Robinho joining the club, spurning the supposed advances of other clubs in the process. With that in mind, it’s hard to see how Shevchenko can be ruled out of the picture altogether.

If Scolari does reverse his decision and decide to give Shevchenko a run of games and the gamble doesn’t pay off, then by all means that should spell the end for the 31-year old at the club. However, a few confidence-boosting starts along with a couple of early season strikes may set him up for a renaissance in his career akin to Alan Shearer and Ronaldo upon their return from long-tern injury, and Ruud Van Nistelrooy, who came back from a set of niggling problems along with many casting him off as ‘finished’ after the 2004-05 season. At one time Shevchenko was of the same, if not better quality than those three; now he needs to prove that he is still capable of performing to a similar standard.

I can already hear some readers scoffing at the idea, saying that Shevchenko isn’t up for the challenge of the Premier League, he’s now just an embarrassment and that your grandmother could do better up front for Chelsea. But considering that the only other definite alternatives available to Scolari for the first few games of the season will be Nicolas Anelka and Franco Di Santo, and remembering the quality that once made Shevchenko one of the world’s greatest, would you be willing to leave him out of your side permanently?

It’s been a good month for Chelsea and Luiz Felipe Scolari. Next month could be a brilliant one if ‘Big Phil’ gives Andriy Shevchenko a chance to prove he still has what it takes.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

There is a tendency within many different avenues of football to overplay the concept of a ‘big club’ in world football. By nature, there will always be disagreements over who are and who aren’t the ‘big clubs’ in the game today, and what criteria defines this honour, but ask a fan, pundit, whoever you like to name the top teams from England, and you’ll usually get the same stock answers: Man United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs and Everton.

The matter of Everton being a ‘big club’ is another matter for another article by a better writer, but it can usually be explained by pointing to their history and their recent resurgence since David Moyes took the helm.

Spurs are an entirely different matter however, and their grouping with the genuine names of English football will come under even greater scrutiny in the next few weeks, dependent on the outcome of the Dimitar Berbatov/Robbie Keane transfer sagas.

If Spurs genuinely want to become one of the big players in world football, then they will need to buck their recent trend of failing to hold onto star names, and become a big club, rather than a feeder club.

As we approach the new Premier League season, the same question will be posed as is at the start of every new campaign: Is there any club who can break up the domination of the Top Four in the league and in regards to the Champions’ League places?

Fans and experts can point to Everton, to Aston Villa, to Manchester City, maybe even to Newcastle at a stretch, but it is actually Spurs who are best equipped at this current moment in time to challenge the Top Four and potentially break up the traditional hierarchy of recent Premiership years. The last few seasons at White Hart Lane have been punctuated by instability and change throughout seasons as the club strive towards their ultimate goal of Champions’ League qualification, a realistic expectation after a season in which a weaker side ran Arsenal right down to the final day, denied by a fired-up West Ham and a questionable lasagna when it really mattered.

That set the bar, but they’ve been stopped in their tracks by a range of factors since that defining 2005/06 season: a failure to perform consistently throughout the campaign, a change of management, the improvement in the Gunners – particularly last season – and especially the loss of important players who made a difference to the standard of the team’s football.

This coming season, it would appear that there can be no real excuses for Tottenham, if they are serious about breaking into the Top Four.

They have the money and the lure to attract continental names (an example being the purchase of the much-sought Luka Modric for a princely £16 million). They are paying top dollar for one of the star managers in European football, the squad is full of high-quality players, and questions are being asked about some of the clubs above them.

For Manchester United and Chelsea, the sheer quality of their squads should negate this matter comfortably, but if Liverpool don’t reinforce with some star names of their own and in particular do not find a scoring strike partner to compliment Fernando Torres, what does their season hold? Arsenal are another side who need to silence the doubters, but with a side that has already been stripped of some of its key performers, along with the threat of Emmanuel Adebayor being shown the door with no proven stars coming in to replace those going out, could they flatter to deceive once again?

If Spurs want to be the serious contenders that all these matters would lead a person to believe they can be, then this needs to be the season where they must combine all the elements, and take that Top Four spot that is certainly within their capabilities.

However, it would appear that their season could be unraveling before it has even begun, with United looking set on prising Barbatov away from the Lane for around £25 million, while Liverpool are doing their best to lure vice-captain Keane to Anfield with a £15-20 million bid. Tempting as I’m sure their money must be for Levy, Comolli et al, to allow these players to go would probably render their season a failure before it has even started.

Along with Jermaine Jenas, Berbatov and Keane were the catalysts behind Spurs’ climb up to mid-table security after the arrival of Ramos, whilst also clinching their first silverware in nearly a decade with the Carling Cup. Throw in a fit Ledley King, and you have the spine of a successful Tottenham Hotspur. To allow the two best strikers to depart would be a disaster for the club, especially given the relative proximity to the start of the season, whilst also giving their main rivals in the battle for the Top Four more of an advantage that they will start with over Spurs.

If Ramos, Comolli and Levy are determined to make Spurs into a ‘big club,’ then their best achievement of the season will be to prove to these two why staying put is the best decision if they want to fulfill their ambitions.

As futile as this may now appear, particularly in the case of Berbatov (Or should that be Emil Dantchev?), it may well be the defining moment of Spurs’ season before a ball has been kicked in anger.

Keep the pair of them: Challenge for Champions’ League football.

Let them go: Scrap around for UEFA Cup places again next season.

The problem is, however, that the likelihood is that by the end of August, both men will be plying their trade at Old Trafford and Anfield respectively. Certainly it is to be expected, given the track record of Spurs in recent years in their bid to hold onto their best players. Excuses can be given for certain players: with Steve Archibald and Chris Waddle, the attraction of European competition post-Heysel was probably too great. Clive Allen? Ditto, as well as his age going against him along with his ability to a degree when he packed his bags for France. Paul Gascoigne? The rot had already set in by the time Lazio came calling, whilst being beset with injuries in his time in North London.

But for other players, it was simply a matter of Spurs not being able to offer what was available elsewhere. Jurgen Klinsmann lasted around a year before he said auf wiedersehen and headed off to Bayern. Teddy Sheringham wanted trophies and medals which Spurs couldn’t provide him with, so he swapped a potential Carling Cup medal in ’99 for three of greater stature with Manchester United. Sol Campbell saw pound signs a few miles down the road at Highbury, and stuck the proverbial two fingers up to the club that nurtured his fantastic ability, while Michael Carrick followed the lead of Teddy almost a decade previously, with two Premier League medals and a Champions’ League to his name since his £16 million move two years previous.

A simple factor connects all these departures for Spurs, however: The club were unable to offer what another team could, be that through whatever means possible at the time, and it marks the team out as a feeder club, rather than a big club. Berbatov and Keane are up there along with those names that have gone before, two players who most clubs across Europe, especially in the former’s case, would love to have in their team. Spurs have enhanced the careers of these men beyond question since they made their way to the club, but it will count for nothing if the peak of their career and their achievements are made for other clubs. Spurs have built themselves this nasty reputation of being just another selling club, and the best way for them to buck the trend is to stand their ground over the summer and retain the players that would give them a real chance of Champions’ League qualification over the summer.

The optimist may point to the example of Everton four years ago and argue that two players do not make a team, and that a club without its hottest property/ies can make a charge at the Top Four – as was the case with the Blues after the doom-mongering in the aftermath of Wayne Rooney’s departure to Manchester United – but the best have gotten better since then.

Liverpool are a better side than they were in Rafael Benitez’s formative year at the club, and even though doubts can be raised over Arsenal, last season proved that it is best never to write them off, especially with the youngsters in the squad bound to get better with experience in the key matches. If a side wants to break into the Top Four now, they will have to get better, because the best have gotten better since Arsenal’s close run in 2006.

With players of Berbatov’s class and Keane’s willingness for the cause in place, along with players such as Johnathan Woodgate, Alan Hutton and Tom Huddlestone to be complimented by potential stars such as Modric, Giovani Dos Santos and Heurelho Gomes, there is the quality in the Spurs side now to challenge the best.

If the two aforementioned leave however, a different perspective will take shape, even with money to bring in reinforcements before the start of the season. Where will the goals come from to supplement the obvious creativity in midfield? Darren Bent? Doubtful after last season. Luis Garcia? A risk at best, over-priced and over-rated at worst. David Villa? Let’s be serious now.

The only realistic shout in this category would be to take Lukas Podolski off the bench at Bayern, but it’s a risk similar to Luis Garcia, and even the undoubted ability Podolski has to offer would not compensate for the loss of Berbatov’s magic touch with the ball at his feet and Keane’s sheer work-rate to match his talent. Spurs can attract the star turns in world football, but as said before, it means nothing if they don’t hold onto them. Hell, if Berbatov and Keane go, will we be holding the same discussion in a few years time if Modric, Dos Santos and Gareth Bale live up the hype surrounding them?

I may seem like I’m berating Spurs at every chance, but I’m a neutral in this whole affair, really. Simply put, I would love to see another team thrown in the mix. Hell, with the exception of their potential rivals, we all would. A fifth team and a new face in the Champions’ League would probably do English football a world of good. Everton, Aston Villa and Manchester City are still at least season one away from the same potential, but it may happen at some point.

For now though, the opportunity lies with Spurs as they currently are. The players are there, the manager is in place, the squad has the chance to have a stable season, they have proven they can beat the top sides and they can win silverware (even if it is the Carling Cup), and they have the money to improve the squad. Tottenham Hotspur have all the potential in the world at the moment, and they are not far away from being a ‘big club.’

But as New Order would put it, it can be Ruined In A Day. As important as the other players in the team will be next season for Spurs if they want to make an assault on a Top Four spot and trophies, Berbatov and Keane are essential, not just in terms of footballing ability, but psychologically as well.

If the management team at White Hart Lane convince the two star turns to stay, then who knows how far Spurs could progress next season, while also proving that they now have the ability to hold onto their best players. If Spurs lose out and the two men head off to pastures new, then it will be Spurs the feeder club once more, and not Spurs the ‘big club.’

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

It’s not been a good 10 days for the Premier League, for Richard Scudamore or for their grand plan to take the league to the world. Flak has come in from all comers, from the media hacks working for the reactionary red-tops, all the way up to the top of the tree, where Sepp Blatter has joined Michel Platini and Mohammed Bin Hassan in dismissing the concept of Premiership matches being played abroad in the bid for lucrative sponsorship deals to make the rich richer.

Chief Executive Richard Scudamore is a wanted man for putting forward the proposal, with the press having a field day in pointing out the disregard for the common fan in order to please the masses abroad and the corporate bodies willing to splash the cash to get their product involved. All things told, the masses have voted and the idea, as John Madjeski put it earlier, is “in tatters”. It’s a black mark the head honchos within the committee will have to work damn hard at to remove any time soon.

Despite the furore though, it’s hard to become alienated with the top clubs despite the amoral concepts agreed by all and sundry, because right now the Premier League is in the throes of one of the most exciting seasons in its 15-year history.

You can essentially split the league into three main parts at the moment; the race for the title between Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea, which looks set to go down to the wire.

You also have the battle between about eight sides to avoid finishing in the last two relegation spots, with the standard of football not always being of the highest calibre, but the drama being enough to raise the pulses of any neutral.

Most intriguing however may well prove to be the battle between a handful of sides to finish in the last available Champions’ League spot, the best path to the untold riches that the Premier League is seeking in alternative climates.

In all, there’s probably only one, maybe two sides floating around with very little to play for with 12 games left in the season (I can’t see West Ham or Middlesbrough making a push for Europe or sliding into a relegation battle), with plenty left to play for otherwise for the other 18 sides in the league.

The battle for 4th is down to about five sides who could have ambitions on finishing in that last spot, some with a better chance than others, but all of whom can’t be ruled out with about a third of the season left. With a break in league competition for the FA Cup this weekend and European matches to follow in the week, this gives us a chance to take a look at the potential of the sides left in the picture for that last spot, and see who has the best chance of earning that right to play Champions’ League football next season…

Everton

Currently occupying the last spot, the Toffees are looking to upstage the odds for the second time in four years and clinch that 4th spot, bu they will hope to go further than last time around, where they were knocked out at the qualifying stage by eventual semi-finalists Villarreal.

Pros: They almost always manage to grind out a result when it matters, irrespective of how poorly they’ve played or how little they’ve created, a staple of their run to 4th the last time they managed it, getting the points when it mattered. David Moyes has produced a side replete with talent, but backed up with a determination to win every challenge and be first to every ball. More often than not, this desire compensates for any downfall in a failure to perform to the standards that the team know they can play to. Their strength comes in their ability to either break down sides through their superior football when it all clicks for them, or to alternatively get a point or three through sheer bloody mindedness. Throw in the fact that a good number of players are left over from the last time around when they finished 4th, providing the experience needed for the battle, and it all adds up to a great opportunity for the club to prove they’re no one-off.

Cons: The record against the clubs around them doesn’t stand up to the standards required. There’s only two wins all season against the other clubs in the top half of the league, with only one point against the “Big Four” from a possible 15, that includes two last gasp defeats, one against Liverpool, the other against Manchester United, with a 4-1 battering from Arsenal thrown in for good measure. It’s all good and well beating the sides in the lower half of the league, something which Everton have all but made into an art form, but when you see their run in and notice that there’s seven games out of 12 against sides in the top half to come, including visits to Anfield and the Emirates along with Chelsea coming to Goodison Park, and you feel that Everton must start getting wins against the clubs around them, otherwise they’ll fall out of the picture for that 4th place quickly and dramatically. Throw in the distraction of the UEFA Cup, and it may all add up to it being a step too far, even for such a talented side.

Will they do it? They could, but I’m sceptical. The record against the sides around them is a major cause for concern, and it must be addressed swiftly, and results must start to come, otherwise it’s curtains for their Champions’ League hopes. A side so talented and so capable are clearly able to get the points when it matters, and nothing can be ruled out at the moment, but I just can’t see it happening. Part of me wants to be proved wrong, but I think 5th or 6th will be the outcome of their season.

Liverpool

Haven’t had a fantastic few months, it could be said. Boardroom unrest, questions over the future of the manager, combined with some dire performances all over the place have resulted in another crisis of confidence at the club, and a genuine fear that they may fall out of the top four once again, an outcome that may have far more repercussion than merely a season in the UEFA Cup for the club.

Pros: Look at the squad, look at the players they can put out every week, and it becomes clear quickly why they are still the favourites to finish 4th. Gerrard, Torres, Alonso, Finnan, Babel, Carragher etc…The names do read like a who’s who in football. It’s always a big if with Liverpool these days, but if they can click like they did early in the season, then Liverpool will start winning games again, and they could quickly put the issue of fourth to bed before it can really gain momentum down the home stretch. It doesn’t matter how badly they played in their last match, you can never, ever write Liverpool off in any match, in any competition, certainly not with the dearth of talent at their disposal.

Cons: Their frightening inconsistency and poor home form for a side that were expected to challenge for the title and for a while looked as if they would. Reading have more home wins than the Reds, and they’re in the relegation zone, with draws against the likes of Wigan, Birmingham and Spurs costing Liverpool precious points, with some of those results being fortuitous to say the least. While on the one hand you can never rule Liverpool out of a game, it’s also rare that you can bank on them to produce a result when it’s required. Their season may well hinge on the outcome of the Inter Milan tie in the Champions’ League. Win it, and it may well inspire them to kick on and finish strongly. Lose, and it would pose many questions about the state of the club and the position of Rafa Benitez, whose position looks more and more unstable with every passing week and every poor result.

Will they do it? Yes, but it won’t be easy. The thing with Liverpool is, they haven’t played a genuinely impressive game since December and the 4-0 win in Marseille, and heaven knows when they last turned it on the league (The 6-0 against Derby in August?), but you can never back against them, because they always seem to pull something out of the hat when it seems unfeasible, especially in Europe (Watch them beat Milan on Tuesday night). You also take a look at their run in and by comparable standards, it’s fairly favourable, so certainly the tools are in place for them to get over the line. It requires an upturn in form and a focus on the task in hand, but knowing Liverpool, they’ll probably render the debate pointless in May when they win the Champions’ League in unbelievable circumstances.

Aston Villa

The most entertaining and refreshing of the five sides in with a shout of finishing 4th, Martin O’Neill’s side is based on an attacking ethos with a hubris of young, talented players providing the quality that has seen Villa blow away many a side so far this season.

Pros: They’re the most upwardly mobile side of all five in with a shout, they’re playing the best football and they’re full of confidence. When it all comes together, you have one of the most solid units in the league to contend with. Everything is kept pretty simple by talented players in their roles, some of whom have stood out all season long. Martin Laursen has been one of the best defenders all season, while Ashley Young and Gabriel Agbonlahor have terrorised many a Premiership defence with their pace, their skill and their ability to change games and win matches, amongst other names such as Scott Carson, Wilfrid Bouma, Gareth Barry and John Carew. The likes of Chelsea and Newcastle have been put to the sword by Villa in full flow at certain points during the season, getting a good battering while they were at it, an embodiment of the talent in the side and the fearlessness within the team. It’s unchartered territories for these players, and in that respect it may help them to just go and have a crack at it in a bid to surprise many by finishing 4th. If they do, their style of football will merit the final outcome, and few would begrudge them that.

Cons: Remember what happened with Spurs two seasons ago? You can spot the similarities in Villa’s season now. Just thinking off the top of my head, I can remember 6 games (The two against Arsenal, Bolton away, West Brom away, Fulham away and West Ham at home) where Spurs dropped points where they shouldn’t have, and it ultimately cost them that 4th spot. I can think of five games already this season where Villa might feel that should have taken more out of the game (Chelsea away, Fulham away, Spurs away, Arsenal at home and Liverpool at home). Those five matches equates to nine points dropped from good positions, and with those nine points, they would be six clear of Everton and Liverpool by now. It’s all ifs and buts, but those points will be crucial at the end of the season, no doubt. They cost Spurs a Champions’ League spot, and they could well cost Villa a Champions’ League spot. If they continue to drop points in such a fashion from here to the end of the season, it will be their downfall.

Will they do it? You’d love to see it, purely to justify Martin O’Neill’s bold policy of basing his team around youthful players with heaps of ability but no experience for such a battle. Their football is breathtaking at times, their confidence is sky high and they have been a revelation this season. You just feel that it won’t be quite enough to allow them to finish 4th though, simply due to a lack of a killer instinct and also, paradoxically, a modicum of inexperience that comes with youth. Of all the sides in the fight, they may well deserve 4th more than any other, but there’s a difference between being the fans’ favourite to finish 4th, and being the best side in the race to finish 4th.

Manchester City

Transformed in hardly no time by the money of Thaksin Shinawatra and the guile of Sven Goran Eriksson as a tactician and talent-spotter, City stuck around with the big names at the top for a while, but in recent weeks have found their place.

Pros: The element of surprise, the wealth of experience that is Eriksson, and the handful of top class Premiership players in their ranks. One loss at home all season has been the bedrock of City’s success, founded initially on a free-flowing attacking style aided by the skill and unpredictability of Martin Petrov and Elano, although in recent weeks the style has been toned down somewhat, replaced by a grittier edge to their game, and a desire to grind out results rather than dazzle sides off the pitch. Teams are still by and large trying to work out how to handle City, and as long as they can continue to pick up results at home, they’re in with a decent shout, although that would become a great shout if they added a few more away wins to their name, like last week at Old Trafford. When you also factor in the sheer ability of Micah Richards, Petrov, Elano, Benjani and the superb Richard Dunne, with Valeri Bojinov and Nery Castillo to return from injuries soon, and City have what it takes to shock a few more sides this season.

Cons: The novelty of surprise on the same vein is beginning to wear thin, while the away form has been bad all season long. They have the worst away record in the league, with results like a draw away to hapless Derby, along with a failure to win from 3-1 up at Fulha early in the season and that 6-0 gubbing at Stamford Bridge also not helping matters. Sven’s negativity away from home stifles a side brimming with attacking ability, and while you can’t blame him in some situation for employing the tactics he does, it’s not befitting of a side with City’s personnel and it has not produced the desired results, with only 14 points picked up from a potential 39 on the road. That’s not Champions’ League form by any stretch of the imagination. The home form will only last so long as well before that comes under scrutiny, so unless City start to play in the style that best suits them on the road as they did early in the season at home, then they will not be finishing anywhere near 4th.

Will they do it? Don’t rule it out, but don’t rule it in either. City have the potential and the players to finish fourth, and Sven has once again gone out and spent wisely in the January transfer market (Benjani at around 3 million, bum knee or no bum knee, is the buy of the window, given his scoring form). However, their form isn’t good enough at the moment to allow them a genuine run at 4th spot, which sounds absurd given they’re only three points away from Everton. But when you consider that they have nasty visits to the likes of the Stadium of Light, the Madjeski and Anfield to come before the end of the season, you feel that they don’t quite have enough in the tank to finish 4th.

Portsmouth

Buoyed by superb away form and brimming with talented players, Harry Redknapp’s side have surprised a few with their form this season. But in truth the club has been building towards a season such as this for a while now. With financial backing the compliment the talent of Redknapp as a manager, Portsmouth may well continue on their upwards curve for a while to come yet.

Pros: The away form is the obvious starting point, as has been mentioned many times over this season. They have the most wins on the road along with Chelsea in the league, and it’s been the foundation for a challenge for 4th. Pompey are also in a similar position to Manchester City in terms of the talent now at their disposal, with quality running through the side like never before. David James, Sylvain Distin, a rejuvenated Glen Johnson, Niko Kranjcar, Sulley Muntari, Papa Bouba Diop, with the promise of Lassana Diarra thrown in for good measure. Initially I balked at the 5 million tag for the player when he was bought, but given his form in recent weeks, he could well turn out to be one of the buys of the season. You always question Redknapp’s policy in the transfer market, and yet he always seems to prove you wrong…the sign of a good manager, who has worked hard over the last 5 years to produce one of the best sides the club has had in nearly 60 years.

Cons: They’re good, but they’re not Champions’ League good, not yet anyways. The home form has been too suspect all season for Portsmouth to mount a serious, sustained challenge and it will have to become as good as the away form before they could even consider getting near 4th, something which you can’t see at the moment. Also consider the distraction of the FA Cup, and what Redknapp’s motives may be. He’s already come out and said how the FA Cup is a major target for Pompey this season, and in some respects you can’t blame him. However, it’s going to have to be a choice between going for the FA Cup and potentially guaranteeing a European spot along with some silverware, or the lure of challenging for that 4th spot and achieving what would probably be the ultimate prize for the club at this moment in time. They’re not good enough to do both, and in any case, fatigue from the African Cup of Nations will put paid to one before too long.

Being hypocritical for a second as well, I have to question Redknapp’s decision to sell Benjani and bring in Jermain Defoe on big money. Benjani is in the form of his life at the moment, and if he had stayed, could have made it 20 or even 25 for the season and propelled Portsmouth to 4th. But he’s not at rivals Man City, and while Defoe’s ability as a striker cannot be doubted, his form can. The man can score 10 goals in 10 games, but will then inevitable go 10 games without a goal. The question is, which Jermain Defoe will turn up in the last 12 games for Portsmouth? If it’s the latter, they can forget about any possible challenge for 4th.

Will they do it? In short, no. It’s a long shot at best, and some will undoubtedly question why Portsmouth are here and Blackburn are not (It’s because their form is just flat out not good enough to mount a challenge), but I felt that the club was worth a mention at least, because ealier in the season they looked like real contender for the 4th spot. They’ve slipped down the pecking order in the last few months, but if the away form continues and Redknapp manages to turn Fratton Park back into a fortress and get the right Jermain Defoe playing for him, then who knows? It’s a long shot, but it was probably a longer shot that Everton would finish 4th a few seasons back, so you can’t completely rule them out at this point anyways, even if it’s more than likely not to happen.

It’s all up in the air at the moment in the race for 4th, even though almost by nature, you have to fancy Liverpool to steal the last spot, simply due to the standard of players within their squad and their ability to pull it out of the hat when it matters. However, it’s a sign of how much certain teams have improved in recent years in the league.

Yeah, you can cite the fact that four of the five sides in the hunt have been taken over in recent years, but you’re then going to tell me that the same four sides filling up the Champions’ League spots every season is fine by you, because you can’t be doing with the entertainment that comes in the race for 4th? In recent seasons it’s been extremely rare that a side comes close to challenging the big names for a Champions’ League spot (Everton and Spurs are the only examples in around a decade) so for four teams to be challenging the hierarchy this season provides a pleasant change and a sign of the increased competitiveness of sides in the league, something that never hurts, because it raises the standard every season in order for sides to remain in that battle for the last spot.

The Premier League doesn’t need to be championing the allure of playing games abroad, rather it should be focusing on promoting one of the more open title races in recent seasons, the battle for sides to avoid the drop and the highly competitive race for 4th. That is where the real attraction of the Premiership lies.

So in chasing the riches that comes in the potential for the 39th game in far flung places, Scudamore and his cronies on the Premier League committee have managed to take the focus away from what promises to be the most exciting run-in to a Premiership season for many a year, for many a reason. With the potential drama surrounding the race for 4th, you feel as if it should be getting more attention from all and sundry, but when you’re dealing with idiots and idiotic decisions, it always managed to take away from the football, no matter how good or how exciting it may be.

How refreshing it is to see the likes of Cardiff, Bristol Rovers, Barnsley and the likes in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, making a pleasant change from the monotonous dominance of Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal, even though it’s likely that the winner of the competition will come one of the former two. I’m a shameless romantic in circumstances like this, so I’ll be rooting for the lesser lights and praying for a Barnsley or Bristol Rovers to make it all the way to Wembley. It may not add up to much of a spectacle on the big day, but would you begrudge any of those players a place in a FA Cup in order to watch another Chelsea-United final in the same vein as the one last season?

So, Giovanni Trapattoni is the new Republic Of Ireland manager, bringing the whole sorry saga to an end on a pretty positive note, the fact that we didn’t give Terry Venables a chance to make us the laughing stock of European football. Trapattoni is an experienced, wily coach with an ingrained style of playing who should at worst solidify a defence that leaked 5 in Cyprus, at best could lead us to the World Cup, although it will be through the trial that is the play-offs.

As a natural cynicist though, doubts still persist over this appointment for me. Firstly, Trapattoni’s utmost reason for taking the job was that the deal was too good to turn down, a potential sign that he’s in for one last big paycheck and out the door in two years time, a paycheck that is coming mostly from the coffers of Denis O’Brien, the Irish businessman, rather than the FAI themselves. Secondly, his record with the Italian national side when it came to the big competitions was frankly crap, in a playing style that the Irish will be based around.

Now, consider the players that Trapattoni had at his disposal in 2002 and 2004, and consider the players we have available, and notice the gulf in class. The question is, if that style didn’t work for such a talented group of players such as Italy, how is it going to make us so significantly better? There’s questions that need to be answered, but I can’t be too pessimistic. All things told, it’s as good an appointment as we probably could have hoped for.

Jamie Redknapp, in the aftermath of another superb performance to keep Portsmouth in the game yesterday, claimed that on current form, David James was the best goalkeeper in the world right now. It’s a lofty appraisal of a man commonly known as ‘Calamity James’, and it’s also an inaccurate one (Iker Casillas is the best in the world right now) but in all fairness, he’s not too far off the mark. David James has been the best goalkeeper in the Premiership for the last 18 months, and he is England’s undisputed Number 1 on merit. Rob Green is not too far behind him in the pecking order for the national side, but right now given the form James is in, and considering the number of times he has saved Portsmouth this season, there should be no question over who wears the ‘keepers jersey for England.

If you asked me at the start of the season what I thought of Emmanuel Eboue, I’d have said he’s a pretty good player, solid, reliable dependable, with a bit to learn, but the potential to be a top player. That still more or less stands to this day, but while you’re at it, add that he’s a nasty, disgusting, cheating little prick. Saturday’s reckless challenge in the wake of Arsenal’s gubbing at the hands of Manchester United was the sign of a kid throwing his toys out of the pram, unfortunately he managed to get away with it last time when following through on John Terry to break his foot. One of these days, you get the feeling someone will turn around and give him some of his own medicine, which wouldn’t come a day too soon, in all fairness. Eboue has the potential to be a class act on the pitch as he develops, and I’m sure he will, but his snidey antics in lashing out at players also marks him out as an arsehole, a far more indicting approach to the player.

So Liverpool got beat by Barnsley in the FA Cup, and the fans still trust Rafa….with many more results like that, it won’t be long before that partnership begins to dissolve. I criticise now, but I know tomorrow night I’ll be shut up well and truly when Inter Milan get beaten at Anfield. It shouldn’t happen, many people won’t believe it can happen, and you can probably include a fair old batch of Liverpool fans in with that, but it’s the exact same story as with Barcelona, Juventus and Chelsea in seasons gone by. Liverpool always pull it out of the hat in the Champions’ League, somehow, someway.

Tomorrow night and the tie in general is no different.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

All of us have had a few days to muse about the departure of Sam Allardyce from Newcastle United now, the announcement coming on Wednesday afternoon, but my opinion hasn’t changed at all in that space of time, and I’m sure it won’t the in the coming months: It’s a laughable decision, from an increasingly laughable club.

Let’s get the statistics, whatever can be dredged from Big Sam’s reign, out of the way first of all. He was given 24 games in charge, that amounts to eight months in the role. In that time, he won a third of those games and drew another six. His side are two places better off in the league at this point than at the same juncture this time last year under Glenn Roeder. The club are still in the FA Cup, even though they admittedly shouldn’t be, after a crap showing against Stoke at the Britannia Stadium a week ago.

Simply put, Newcastle under Allardyce was not the most enthralling adventure, it wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t pleasant, at times it was downright moribund. But it was a damn sight healthier than anything the last two managers had managed to put together in their reigns at the club, particularly in reference to the hopeless reign of Graeme Souness, who wasn’t sacked a day too soon.

I think an awful lot of people lost sight of the role that Allardyce was installed to work upon in the first place at St. James’ Park. Granted, it was Freddy Shepard’s last act before the summer takeover of Sports Direct and Mike Ashley, but the premise surely had to remain the same: Stability.

Stability for a club who had chased the highs and lived the dream not that long ago, but failed to attain the silverware and glory they required, before sliding down the hierarchy at a startling rate. The wild ride under Kevin Keegan produced some of the best football and most exciting moments in the 15-year history of the Premiership, while Bobby Robson’s experienced produced a solid, but unsuccessful top 6 side.

Since his departure though, the best Newcastle could have hoped for was avoiding being sucked into the morass of a relegation dogfight, despite huge money signings of some of the bigger names in world football. Sam Allardyce was brought in to bring stability. Sam Allardyce would have eventually brought stability, but you find me a manager who can manage it in 24 games. Frankly it’s an outcome that everyone involved with Newcastle United, from the fairweather fan to the owner himself, should be utterly embarrassed with. And there’s a hell of a lot of people who you can point the finger at.

A fan from the region phoned into that pantheon of jingoistic, reactionary broadcasting that is TalkSport earlier today and complained about the vile abuse thrown at Newcastle United and their fans in the last few days, from media hacks who smell blood. Sorry mate, but someone has to say it. Because you can blame the owner, who has reacted without thinking and seen his manager as a dispensable item when the going gets tough. You can blame the media if you like, for spinning the whole situation out of control and talking Allardyce out of his job. You can blame the players, for playing like crap in the last few weeks and not giving enough to the Newcastle cause. You can blame Allardyce if you like, as a lot of fans have suddenly decided to do, for paying over the odds for bad players, putting people out of position and not getting the results.

But where does the malaise stem from? The fans, pure and simple. There’s a hell of a lot of people who come out of this situation with a bad name, but it’s the Newcastle fans who end up looking the worst in this whole messy affair, the greatest indication of fan power over sense within a football club.

Rewind to eight months ago, and find me a Newcastle fan at the time who opposed Allardyce’s appointment. Try if you like, because I would suggest they were few and far between. This is a man with previous, there’s no doubting that. This is a man who has never been cleared of charges of corruption surrounding transfers made whilst he was in the Bolton hotseat. This is a man who has a very high, almost too lofty estimation of himself at times and this is a man who can grind on the nerves of any person, me included, with his pertinent complaining and absolving of himself, no matter what the scenario is.

But, this is also a man who is one of the top managers within this country. His record before Newcastle was practically flawless. Success at Limerick, success at Blackpool, success at Notts County (They won the old Division Three title by 19 points in his first full season in charge) and there was significant success in his eight years with Bolton.

They came up into the Premiership and stayed up in the Premiership under his guidance, and before too long they swapped places with Newcastle, becoming an established top 6 side in the league towards the back end of his reign at the club, with European qualification expected rather than dreamt about. They were uncompromising, they weren’t that pretty on the eye, in fact they were downright nasty at times. But they were successful for it, and Allardyce at least deserved the plaudits for the way he brought the club up from Division One mediocrity to a regular top half Premiership club in the space of a decade.

There’s not too many other examples of it in English football in recent times. This was the man that Newcastle as a club needed, and it was the man that the fans almost universally wanted. Stability, that was the byword for the time being. Some wanted instant success, but it was a pipe dream, and I’m pretty sure that in August, most Newcastle fans would have been happy with a season that at least showed signs of the club going along the right tracks. Allardyce himself said he couldn’t flick a switch and suddenly the Magpies would be conquering all before them, but with time, they could be another Bolton, in terms of sustained improvement and success.

Now, those same fans have hounded him out, with a raft of reasons given, and suddenly everyone is delighted to see the back of him. Bad football, bad signings, not enough entertainment, poor form at home, too technical, not good enough, not what the club needs. Sorry, but what do you want, Newcastle fans? You can either have a stable, gradually improving club who with time may well have finally delivered a trophy to the club after nearly 40 years, even though they may well have been dark days along the way. Or, you can have the helter skelter, 100mph ride that is gung ho management under lesser managers who might get the odd decent result or run of form together, but never with the desired results that the fans yearn for. You can’t have both, so when the general consensus is that the club needs stability, after 20 games it would appear the fans have had enough, and want out?

An indication of how fickle the general fanbase of Newcastle fans is, although not every fan should be tarred with the same brush. “You don’t know what you’re doing?” No, you just don’t know what you want, and now that you’ve sat through a 4-1 defeat at home to a very able Portsmouth side on a fantastic run away from home, suddenly Allardyce is not fit for the job. It’s hard to know who is worse actually, the fans for being as pathetically impatient as they have shown themselves to be in the last few months, or the head honchos at the club who would appear to have reacted before thinking, and ripped up the template for the club once again. A case of the blind leading the blind, it would appear in this instance.

So now where does this leave the club, searching for their eight manager in just over a decade? Incredulously, it would appear that Harry Redknapp is going to be the man who steps up to the plate and takes control of the most poisonous chalice north of Real Madrid. I would personally hope that Redknapp has far more sense than to takeover at a club which doesn’t even deserve him. Figures of £4-5 million a year contracts are being banded around, which would be hard for anyone to turn down, admittedly, but it’s not about money anymore for Redknapp, and it’s not about reputation.

He built up a decent name for himself developing some of the current starlets of the game at West Ham, over the years bringing STABILITY to the club, despite a hefty turnover of players. At Portsmouth he led the club through the ranks in a similar vein to Allardyce at Bolton, before a bizarre sequence of events saw him switch to Southampton, preside over their relegation from the Premiership and then going back to Pompey and producing one of the more remarkable survivals in the history of the league, before turning the club into a STABLE unit, who has been knocking on the door of Europe for the last 18 months, and may well break through this season.

Redknapp has earned his reputation as a manager who can work with youth, who can work with older heads, who can make the best out of a bad situation and who is generally a very capable manager. He should remain focused on the task at hand with Portsmouth, a club actually going in the right direction, with a loyal fanbase who forgave a man who defected to the other South Coast club and came back, a man who has overseen some pretty bad days in recent times for Portsmouth, yet who has come out of the situation looking impressive almost every time. If he stays at Portsmouth, they could go on to have their best period in the club’s history since the heady days of the 1940′s. If he goes to Newcastle, he’ll be lucky if the St. James’ ‘faithful’ aren’t looking for his head after the first bad home performance.

Most importantly though, it would not be worth Redknapp’s time going to a club where his predecessor was shown the door for working under essentially the same premise that Redknapp will work under if he does indeed take up the reigns at the club. The similarities between the two are startling, in terms of their approach to management.

Both will try to build a club up through the years, using whatever means necessary to ensure consistency within a club, linked in with gradual improvement for the benefit of the team. Both search out obscure markets for rough diamonds, both will buy the has-beens, the never-were’s and the bad boys of the group, and make something out of their careers, and both are uncompromising, old time, get stuck in managers who don’t mind having to play bad football if it means achieving results (Although admittedly, Redknapp’s style can at times be more flowing than that of Allardyce).

For Harry Redknapp, read Sam Allardyce. For Sam Allardyce, read Harry Redknapp. And remind me what happened to Sam Allardyce at Newcastle? It’s not a path Redknapp should be entertaining, no matter what the sums of money are, no matter what the potential challenge is. He’s got a better chance of rubber-stamping his legacy at Portsmouth, arguably the most improved club in English football since the turn of the Millennium, than he has by taking up the impossible job at Newcastle.

Fittingly though, it’s probably best to let some of the fans have the last word about Harry Redknapp. Already the dissenters have said they don’t want Redknapp in charge, the best reason I’ve heard so far is that he’s too Southern, amongst other, generally worthless musings on a very capable manager. However, the Newcastle fans obviosuly know best, so without further ado, here’s some of the finest footballing minds, from the wealth of knowledge that is the BBC 606 website, explaining why Redknapp is an old duffer not up to the task…

“I dont want Redknapp – Were [sic] going through the same recruitment process as we did for Allardyce: Looking at managers who have done brilliant at one club, but cant handle the pressure of being at a bigger one.”

“Rednapp [sic] is of a similar breed to Allardyce, he can do a lot with not a lot. But when you give the man money he will probably stumble. When you shop in poundland it’s always harder to shop in Marks’n'sparks.”

“If we wanted an overweight corrupt Englishman dazzling in mediocrity, deemed inadequate for England, why didn’t we stick with the goon Sam Allardyce?”

“I cant believe it if its true, we are a club who desetve [sic] to be challenging for the title and in the champions league on a constant basis, but we wont [sic] do that with a second rate coach like Redknapp.For gods [sic] sake pull all the stops for Jose or Lippi Ashley. If we get the right coach, i [sic] think we will make top 4 come next season and [sic] challenging for the title.”

Sod buying a ticket for a Chris Rock show in London, this show is far more amusing…

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Towards the end of 2006, certain pundits and magazines were proclaiming the birth of Sir Alex Ferguson’s third (for some, fourth) great team stemming from his 20-year tenure at Manchester United.

The team were wreaking havoc within the Premiership, and everyone with an opinion was quick to acclaim this as the next chapter in the legacy of Sir Alex Ferguson at the club, the same pundits who wrote the Scot off in the years gone by. The side who were tipped by many to be scraping around for a Champions’ League spot before the start of the season hit the front early, then went on a run probably not seen before in the 15 year history of the Premiership that lasted the duration of the season, managing to hold off the spirited challenge of reigning champions Chelsea and secure United and Ferguson’s ninth title since the inauguration of the Premier League.

It was an achievement probably only topped in the modern era by the United side of 1999 and Arsenal’s Invincibles in their unbeaten campaign of 2003/04, but neither side embodied the collective grit, determination and panache of the 2006/07 Red Devils en route to their place in history.

The trick is always in retaining a title however, something Ferguson has become relatively accustomed to over the years, and it would have initially appeared that the 2007/08 United side would fail to reach the same heights as the previous year. Two points and one goal from their first three games, including a sending off for Cristiano Ronaldo at Fratton Park, followed by a Derby day defeat to Manchester City, saw most people questioning United’s credentials for the title.

Fast forward to the last few days of 2007 though, and most people would probably have United down as the favourites to reclaim their Premiership crown, myself included. It would appear that after the initial blip, the Red Devils have found their stride again, only losing once since the Eastlands defeat in the league, whilst also picking up important victories against Chelsea and Liverpool, whilst taking a point away from the Emirates stadium. The rest within the league have also been on the end of United’s wrath, the most recent and perhaps most impressive showing coming away to Sunderland, where the home side was completely taken apart in a 4-0 drubbing, a performance described by many pundits as “almost perfect”.

Granted, Arsenal have been the more surprising and somewhat more eye-catching of the two sides who will probably end up fighting for the title, but Manchester United have been going about their task with ruthless efficiency more often than not, and it may well be a trait that sees them pick up a 10th Premiership crown.

Ferguson’s tactic of buying big seems to have paid off in the summer, with only Nani failing to make a significant impression on English football thus far since his move in the summer, but he has also had his moments (The winner against Spurs in late August) and doubtless he is being groomed as a future star within this United side. The trio of Anderson, Owen Hargreaves and Carlos Tevez have all done their jobs thus far though, the former pair going a long way towards justifying their hefty transfer fees with solid, dependable showings in the heart of United’s midfield, something which has seen questions raised about Michael Carrick’s own position within the hierarchy, while Paul Scholes may find it very tough to make it back into the starting XI on a regular basis upon his return from injury, a statement I never personally expected to say while Scholes was still playing to such a high standard.

The side has also been helped no end by the best defensive record in the league, shipping less then a goal every two games at the moment, with Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic forming one of the best centre-back pairings in Ferguson’s time at the club, ably assisted by Patrice Evra and Wes Brown. Again, it’s a sign of the times when Gary Neville may well have competition for a place upon his own return from injury, even if Brown may well be helping his captain’s cause by stalling on a new contract. Edwin Van Der Sar remains sturdy as usual the majority of the time, although the development of a new goalkeeper, be it Tomasz Kuszczak, Ben Foster or a new signings, will be preying on Fergie’s mind, given Van Der Sar’s age and tendency to make a mess of situations at times. He has signed a new two-year contract, but he will need to up his game a little in the second half of the season in order to stop any doubts about his position as United’s Number 1.

Attack still remains United’s forte though, the fact that they have scored as many goals as their North London counterparts thus far proving testament to their own ability in the final third. Tevez and Rooney have formed a deadly partnership up front which promises more and more with every game, while Ryan Giggs continues to perform to his expected standard, maintaining his own position within the team despite the overtures of Nani, who will need to look at dislodging Giggs from the side, because no-one comes close to Cristiano Ronaldo at the moment.

Top scorer in the league currently, top dog in the United team and probably the top player in the world, he is the unstoppable force at the moment. While the rest of the side is playing well, he is on a different level to anyone else and fully deserves the accolades he is receiving. Last season it was a case of when he was going to have a dip in form, but it never came. As a consequence, no-one is expecting such a slump this time around, while the same can be said about the team as a whole currently.

Simply put, if Manchester United continue to perform to the standard they are setting at the moment, there is no-one to stop them in the Premier League. Give Arsenal the credit they deserve, and the likelihood is that they will run their opponents a long, long way in this title fight. But if United play lie they have been for the last four months all the way up to May, they will retain their title, it’s as simple as that.

However, there is more to consider than just whether United can or cannot retain their crown as Premiership champions. It is also worth considering where this set of players fits in the ranks of United sides that Ferguson has developed in his 20 years as the boss at Old Trafford. In truth, this probably is the third great side of Ferguson’s reign, (The United title-winning side of 2003/04 was largely referred to as the third great side, but the team was broken up too quickly, was not successful enough and did not have time to make their own mark on history) but they have to prove their worth, with the potential to become the greatest side of Ferguson’s era and potentially of United’s history also at stake if they continue to perform to such a standard.

Ferguson’s first great side spanned half a decade, starting with the first title in over 30 years for the club and culminating in the 1996/97 title, setting the stage for Ferguson to build over the next decade. Veterans such as Steve Bruce, Bryan Robson and Mark Hughes, coupled with the ability of Gary Pallister, Peter Schmeichel, Denis Irwin, Paul Ince, Eric Cantona and Roy Keane along with the blooding of youngsters such as David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Paul Scholes saw United take four of the first five Premier League titles, with two FA Cups thrown in for good measure, in the process seeing United become the first side in English football to win the Double twice. The collective brilliance of Ferguson’s first great United team would be a hard feat to follow, but the new era which followed soon after blew all of United’s previous achievements out of the water.

The second great United side did not dominate English football for quite as long as the previous outfit, but it is generally seen by many that there has never been as successful a team as the Treble winning team of 1998/99, who then added two more Premiership titles to their name before slowly dissolving. Schmeichel, Neville, Irwin, Johnsen, Pallister, Stam, Butt, Keane, Giggs, Beckham, Scholes, Cole, Yorke, Sheringham, Solskjaer, the names of that Treble winning side are still remembered almost a decade on, and will be long into the future, achieving a feat that will be matched by few in many, many years to come and may well never be overhauled.

It will always be remembered for the dramatic moments, such as the semi-final at Villa Park, the 6-1 mauling of Arsenal, the last day at home in the 98/99 against Tottenham Hotspur, the 8-1 at the City Ground, Scholes’ volley at Valley Parade and that night in Barcelona, but it was also United’s ridiculous ruthlessness in dispatching with opponents, big or small, that has to be noted, the defining factor behind their march to three straight Premiership titles.

Ferguson’s second great United side may not have been as proficient at collecting silverware as it’s predecessor over a long period of time, but in terms of sheer ability, United’s side from August 1998 to May 2001 is probably up there with the very best English football has ever produced. It does seem quite harsh to ignore Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s contribution to United’s history, but with only one Premiership title to his name in his time at the club, his period cannot be defined as a memorable one in United’s general history, even if his own contribution was marked.

So what of the third great era of Manchester United under Sir Alex? Truth be told, it is a tad premature for comparisons to be made with teams of such stature as those that Ferguson has produced in years gone by, especially when you consider it is still a somewhat formative team with only one Premiership crown to their name, but it would also be quite churlish to ignore the potential flowing through this new crop that Fergie is moulding together.

The run put together last season is arguably more impressive than that of the Treble winning side, depending on who you discuss the matter with, and the efficiency, style and tenacity that United nowi possess in all areas of the park means that they can be a match for any side, at any stadium, on any day.

There is still plenty of work to be done, United will probably have to conquer Europe once more if this side is to be mentioned in the same breath as the likes of the 92/97 and 98/01 teams, and that means no more nights such as the one at the San Siro back in April, and naturally the standard will be raised domestically if Arsenal’s youngsters continue to progress at the rate with which they have done in the first half of this season, while Chelsea and Liverpool continue to spend big in search of trophies, therefore United may well face a multi-pronged attack on their domestic dominance, but these are all hurdled that Ferguson has faced before, and it is something he has overcome before, therefore you cannot say that there are any reasons why this side can flat out not be successful for many years to come.

The ability is there, the mentality is there and the chances for success are plentiful, it is now up to the likes of Ronaldo, Rooney, Ferdinand, Tevez, Hargreaves, Anderson, Nani, Evra, Vidic, Carrick and the rest to make their own mark on their club’s and the countries’s footballing history. If they perform to the potential that they clearly possess, they could match and even surpass the sides that have gone before them, Sir Matt Busby’s European Cup winning team included, but if they don’t, then United fans may well be left asking what could have Fergie’s third great team could have achieved in their time. It’s time for these players to make their mark.

Chelsea sacked Jose Mourinho in September under the subliminial premise of wanting more entertainment, more bang for their buck, or rouble, if you will, whilst also guaranteeing continued success. They sure have it, Avram Gran’t side are nothing if not entertaining, their two most entertaining fixtures under his brief tenure being a 1-0 loss to Arsenal and a 4-4 epic at home to Aston Villa. Entertaining? Yep. Seven points behind Manchester United in the title race? Yep.

I do wish the FAI would stop this painfully drawn out process of trying to find the new international manager for the Republic, appoint Terry Venables and put me out of my misery, along with many others, I would assume. This three-man panel appointed to search out the new man, including the odious Ray Houghton, has appeared to have done nothing but persuade Paul Jewell into taking up a Championship job and scare off Graeme Souness, thankfully. If they managed to warn Venables off the job, the men can have access to my bank account details, however I think that’s about as likely as the trio enticing Marcello Lippi into taking up the role. Just appoint Venables now, stop mucking around, and watch us slip further down the hierarchy.

The media has found it’s new campaign to latch onto in recent weeks, with the sudden awareness over two-footed lunging drawing comments from the great, the good and the worthless of English football. Putting aside my cynicism for a minute however, it is an issue which does need addressing. As Stan Collymore and others have said in the last few days, it is a matter which needs to be stamped out and stamped out quickly, otherwise the bigwigs will step in after a promising player’s career has been ended by a horror tackle, making moves when it is all too late. I sincerely hope that referees continue to send players off for these reckless lunges as deemed necessary, contact or no contact. If they continue to do so, watch the matter being slowly phased out.

Note to Fabio Capello: Play Leon Osman on the left side for England when he returns from injury. Capello has no genuine left-sider within the traditional ranks of England players, so it’s time that Osman was given a chance. He’s been Everton’s most consistent player, barring Tim Cahill over the last few seasons, and he deserves a crack at the international game at least. If he is ignored by another England manager, then it will be travesty for such an able performer.

I contemplated using this article to write a piece on the best and worst of 2007, but I’m sure that there will be another author who will fill that role quite ably. However, I would like to give a special mention to Gary Johnson and Bristol City as my best team of 2007. City went up as runners-up in League One last season, and they have taken like a duck to water in the Championship, maintaining play-off form right up to the end of the year. I only hope that they manage to remain competitive for a play-off position all the way up to May, because Johnson and his players deserve success, they’re an excellent little outfit who go by with hardly any recognition, although if they have as good a year in 2008, expect that to change. Notable mentions are also due for Portsmouth, Barnsley for staying up in the Championship, Drogheda United for upsetting the apple cart in Ireland and winning the Premier Division title Toulouse for earning a Champions’ League spot in France, Croatia for their performances in qualifying for Euro 2008 and Chasetown, for becoming the smallest team ever to make the third round of the FA Cup.

I would also like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a belated Happy Christmas and the best of wishes for 2008. I hope that I manage to have as good a year in 2008 as I have had in 2007, and I extend that hope to the rest of you. All the best and enjoy your New Year’s Celebrations.

Updated links.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

The story of Alhassan Bangoura has been fairly well documented in the gathered media over in Britain over the last few days.

That article is probably the best description of the circumstances that Bangoura faced while living in Sierra Leone, from his inevitable execution, to his exile from the country of his birth, faced with human trafficking along the way, before ending up being scouted in a park by Watford, signing on professional terms with the club, and becoming a noticeable, if not necessarily integral part of the club’s push towards Premiership survival last season, and their rise to the top of the Championship table this time around.

He has been offered a contract with the promotion chasers until 2009, who clearly see him as a talent worth keeping hold of, believing he may well play a part a second time around in the Premier League if Watford continue to perform to the level which they can and have thus far this season, despite their recent blip in form.

As important as this is to the story, (it must be said that Bangoura’s case would be a non-issue were it not for the scope that a professional football club provides), it is all something of a side-issue, given what may be potentially at stake if the Asylum and Immigration Authorities enforce their ruling from the week.

Now, given the cirumstances that were stated within the BBC article, the mind boggles how the Immigration Authority can approve the deportation of any person who has been through an ordeal such as Bangoura’s.

Of course, life is not nearly as hard now for him, earning a good sum per week on a contract with a Premiership-chasing football club, married with a newborn son having arrived 10 days ago, but if Bangoura is deported, not only will he lose the life that he has earned by proving his ability and prowess as a footballer, he will probably lose his life.

As simple as it gets, if Al Bangoura is sent back to Sierra Leone any time soon, the Poro Secret Society will find him, they will almost certainly torture him, and then for their own personal retribution, they will mutilate him. It really is one of those situations where you have to put yourself in the position that Bangoura faces, and imagine what future, if any lies ahead for him if Britain sends him back to his ravaged home country.

Find the sense and justice in that, I’m lapsing away from the football side of the matter here somewhat, but there’s far more at stake than just sport.

Adrian Boothroyd is always a man who has earned my admiration for his ability as a manager and a person, he’s learning with every game what coaching a side is all about and if the Watford board back him for years to come, they may well be able to establish themselves in the Premiership, while his forthright views always managed to hit home, because it is clear that he knows what he is talking about.

In this respect, he certainly could have chosen his words a little better in some respects, but his view is embodied well enough through his words, and certainly you’ll have to go far to find anyone with half an ounce of sense that disagrees with what he has to say. He put it better than I ever could, so I’ll leave it to the man himself…

“After the immigration hearing I said that I had faith in British justice but obviously I was totally mistaken because it’s a completely ludicrous decision,” Boothroyd said.

“This country, great as it once was, seems to allow anybody in to send benefits wherever they fancy and we have one young man here who pays his taxes, has a fiancee and a newborn son and somebody somewhere thinks it’s a good decision to send him back to Sierra Leone. It’s ridiculous.

As highlighted in the Times article, the Labour MP for Watford, Claire Ward, has promised to take up Bangoura’s case up with the Immigration Minister, Liam Byrne, in a bid to ensure that Bangoura can remain in the country on a permanent basis.

Some of you cynics may question why he deserves such preferential treatment in comparison with other, perhaps even more damning cases dotted around the country.

The simple fact of the matter is that he doesn’t deserve preferential treatment in the same way that no-one does, and that every case should be taken on it’s merits, rather than the status of the individual involved. But this is the only case that will attain a media scope on this level, and in that respect, it brings the issue home to people of how bizarre rulings in cases such as these can be.

The Immigration Authority has condemned people to torture and death before with it’s decisions, they will do it in the future, long after the Al Bangoura case has been consigned to history. But now that a matter like this is in the public domain, it is important that everything is done to save at least one life, even if in the relative context of matters, it is a privileged life. If Al Bangoura is sent back to Sierra Leone, then it will be a black stain on the name of the Immigration Authority, and it will almost certainly be Bangoura’s blood on their hands.

I cannot tell you the ins and outs of Alhassan Bangoura as a player, and I am not going to pretend that I know everything about his playing style, his potential as a future star for Watford or anything else relative to his career. Simply put, the footballing issues need to be put to one side for now, despite the scope that they have provided in bringing his case to the attention of the local and national media, they are not important right now.

I implore readers of this article to sign up to the petition that Claire Ward will be presenting as part of her argument against the deportation of Al Bangoura, be it at the appeal which has been lodged, or at another point in the near future. Her parliamentary e-mail is wardc@parliament.uk, so I would urge you to send a brief message voicing your support for the campaign of Bangoura, be you a Watford fan, a Manchester United fan, a Hartlepool fan, a Motherwell fan, hell, even if you’re a Luton fan, register your support. It may well prove to be a futile effort in the end, but it is important to consider what is potentially at stake in this situation, not only for Al Bangoura, but for his friends, for his colleagues, for his club, and especially for his wife and baby boy. It’s a small contribution, but at least it’s something.

NB: Matthew from TheOffside, who runs the England and Leeds United blogs, brought this matter to light within his blogs before I wrote this article. His contribution to the matter must be noted and appreciated as well relating to this matter. You can find his brief piece on the matter at the link below:

British Government poised to condemn young African footballer to death

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

We’ve been here before. After the failure of the Republic of Ireland to qualify for the 2006 World Cup two years ago, the arrogant, insipid, somewhat idiotic Brian Kerr was finally jettisoned from a position which he wasn’t fit for in the first place. Great stuff, now all we needed was a new, fresh approach with a willing manager who could take the side back to major finals. So John Delaney and the other head honchos at Merrion Square ended up appointing Walsall assistant manager Steve Staunton, with Sir Bobby Robson at his side.

Okay then, it’s not exactly the first choice, but hell, let’s go along with it, see where it takes us. Fast forward from that January evening at the start of last year, and Staunton is searching for another position elsewhere, after being cast aside by the same men who sought him out not so long ago, after a failure to qualify for Euro 2008, the endgame coming with a frankly embarrassing 1-1 draw with Cyprus at Croke Park, a ground of such history and tradition for all Irish sports fans. Oh yes, we’ve been here before. The names are different, the circumstances are very similar however.

So how has the situation deteriorated to such an extent that the FAI felt they had to pay off Staunton the better part of 1 million pounds and start all over again? There’s no doubting the contribution Staunton has made to Irish football over the years. He’s Ireland’s most capped player in about 80 years of international competition, the only player to appear in all three of the nation’s World Cup appearances, with a reputation as an able centre-back who always gave 100% to the cause.

His failure as head coach of the national side won’t wipe this away from the records, but the reputation has now been unfortunately tarnished in many people’s eyes. His tenure began with a fine 3-0 win against Sweden, with optimism high for ‘the Gaffer’ and his attacking style of play, despite Sweden’s strangely subdued showing on the night. However, from there on in it was pretty much all downhill, spare three straight wins against Wales and Slovakia in Euro 2008 qualifiers and a 4-0 drubbing of Denmark in Copenhagen (Again ignoring the fact that the opposition were truly awful on the night).

Defeats against Germany and the Czech Republic away in the qualifiers were expected to a certain degree, but the problem came with Cyprus. A truly humiliating 5-2 reversal in Nicosia was the beginning of the end for Staunton, with the coup de grace coming in his final match, Steve Finnan barely saving face with a last-gasp equaliser at home, with the boos ringing out loud and clear. Granted, the Cypriots are now a decent side in their own right in European football, but they are still miles behind the Irish in terms of players and facilities, so to hand four points over to them was inexcusable.

Defeats at home to Chile and Holland didn’t help, along with almost becoming only the third side to drop points to San Marino in over 15 years, a side who lost 13-0 at home to Germany previously in the qualifying campaign. Looking at the matter from a results perspective, there is a certain justification for why Staunton had to go.

However, there is always another side to the story. It can be argued that Staunton wasn’t really given a fair crack of the whip, and that 17 games in charge of any team isn’t enough time for anyone to stamp their authority on a squad or develop their own style of play and allow the players to become accustomed to the system.

There is also the issue of the group Ireland were placed in, one of the tougher ones within the entire Euro 2008 campaign. Along with Groups B and F, Group D was one to avoid, with a Germany side improving with every game after their run to the semi-finals in their own World Cup and a young and enthusiastic Czech Republic side eager to bounce back from their own bitterly disappointing showing in the finals in Germany. Throw in Slovakia, and a difficult tie in Bratislava, as well as a Welsh side who would be keen to prove their mettle against a local rival and it wasn’t exactly an easy group to come out of.

Ultimately and somewhat ironically though, it was the showing against the lesser lights in the group which did for Staunton. If Ireland had been thrown in along with Greece, Norway and Turkey, or Holland, Romania and Bulgaria, the story may well have been very different. The hounding the manager received from the Irish media made matters worse, an increasing issue with the Irish press pack in recent years.

The hacks still yearn for someone in the mould of flat-cap Jack Charlton, whose tactics mostly compromised of “Stick it up to the big lad and see what happens”. Granted, it got Ireland to a World Cup quarter final, but do that on a regular basis against the best sides in Europe today, and you won’t last long. The media persona of Staunton as a lightweight with a bit too much baggage and not enough ability to handle the job soon turned the fans against him, and the situation manifested from there, up to his eventual culling.

It is not to make excuses for the man, but to ignore these issues would also be to neglect the other side of the issue, which deserves it’s own airing. It’s now, of course, impossible to know whether persevering with Staunton would have reaped it’s benefits a la Mick McCarthy, but if the FAI were so keen to get shot of Staunton after a couple of bad results, then what was the point of giving the man a four-year contract in the first place.

Really, the blame needs to once again fall at the feet of the FAI, an all too common procedure these days. Roy Keane’s walkout on the Irish side days before the World Cup opener against Cameroon in 2002 is still an unforgivable crime in my eyes, but his savaging of the facilities at hand for the Irish side brought the issue to light. Keane commented on how the apparatus at hand for the squad was “a joke” for a side with genuine ambitions and hopes of going very far into the competition (With hindsight, an Irish side with Keane in the middle may well have beaten Spain and Korea in 2002, hell, maybe even Germany in the semis), ensuring that the issue was hammered home for the bigwigs in Dublin.

So the Genesis report came out, promising a change across the board for Irish football. We were promised new and better facilities from grassroots to national level, we were promised a stronger, more competitive League of Ireland with the teams coming out of it making strides into top European competitions and we were also promised a development of young, Irish coaches for the future and talented youth players, something which we had a real dearth of at that point.

Other than a redevelopment of Lansdowne Road funded by the Irish Rugby Football Union, none of the supposed facilities have been forthcoming. Other than Shelbourne’s run to the third qualifying round of the Champions’ League in 2004, no Irish side has made any mark in Europe and the League is still as ‘Mickey Mouse’ as it ever was, even with a unification of the FAI and League of Ireland entities and a restructuring of the league format.

But the biggest sticking issue is the complete lack of any progress with the management or youth development schemes planned within the scheme. Barring one good season out of Roy Keane at Sunderland, there have been no changes in terms of new managers coming through, while it was left for Keane to point out the lack of improvement in any of the youth teams, highlighted by a 3-0 defeat at home for the Under 21′s to their English counterparts. The fact that the one potential shining light for Ireland comes in the form of Scottish-born James McCarthy at Hamilton Academical says an awful lot for the state of that facet as well.

The simple fact of the matter is that the FAI have failed on their promises once again, and their decisions have had a detrimental effect on the state of Irish football. After more media pressure brought about the demisal of Mick McCarthy, Delaney and his talking heads moved Kerr up a notch or two to the top job in Irish football. His best competitive result was a win away to Georgia, when the most potent threat of the evening from the home side came from a fan who threw a knife at Gary Doherty. He soon fell on his sword when the FAI saw some sense, again promising the fans a “world-class management team.”

Again, it’s not to lambast the double team of Staunton and the vastly experienced and successful Robson, but first of all, they were lying through their teeth, and second of all, it was a serious gamble at a time when stability was required. Now they’ve gotten tired of Staunton’s rhetoric, they’ve bundled him out of the door, no doubt helped by the writers at RTE, when the man was not even halfway through his four-year contract.

For an outsider, it would soon become painfully clear why there has been a general breakdown in trust from the fans towards the leaders in the Irish capital. Whether that faith can ever be restored in such a shoddy outfit, led by a bunch of stuffed suits, with Delaney the standout example of them, remains to be seen. Don’t hold your breath.

The best way Delaney and his mob can start to restore faith in the system is by finally appointing a manager of known ability, someone who can lead the current crop into the finals of a major competition, be it South Africa in 2010 or maybe even to Poland and Ukraine in 2012. Since Staunton’s sacking on Tuesday night, Phillipe Troussier and Liam Brady have been the only two men to clearly state their desire to take the post, while the media have persistently linked the likes of John Aldrige, Graeme Souness and David O’Leary to the job, the latter more so than anyone else.

O’Leary is viewed as the potential saviour of Irish football, now free of any club ties, available and supposedly willing to take a serious pay cut into order to take the job. People remember the Champions’ League semi-final with Leeds, along with many other glory days for the club, but that was admittedly with serious financial backing, the likes of which he will not get in international management. His period at Aston Villa, under far tighter financial constraints, was less successful and his stock as a number one suffered as a consequence.

To appoint O’Leary would not be a bad decision, it is not to say that one bad spell at Aston Villa under Doug Ellis makes you a bad manager, but certainly if he is appointed, his managerial career will depend on how he fares with Ireland, is it a risk that the FAI are willing to make, is it even a risk O’Leary is willing to make?

From a personal standpoint though, I believe O’Leary isn’t the answer to Ireland’s problems, the solution may well lie in what would be an unglamorous, potentially even unpopular choice amongst some sections. Paul Jewell has the proven track record that is required, the man is deserving of a chance at the big time, in this case a chance to represent a country at a major European or international finals tournament, and his talents as a manager are grossly under-rated by most. A grafter rather than an entertainer, you know what you are getting with Jewell: stability.

The man has always been able to make a decent fist of the players at his disposal, getting Bradford up to the Premiership with a fairly average squad and keeping them there against all odds for one season. Then there was the spell at Wigan, moving the club up from the Second Division to the Premiership in 5 years, before defying the odds once again by surprising many in getting the Lancashire club to a mid-table finish in their first season. Of course the second season was a major downturn, but the key is that Jewell and his players managed to come away from Bramall Lane with a 2-1 win on the final day to stay up, a result no-one fancied them to achieve given their horrible form prior to the final-day encounter.

It’s proof that Jewell is the grinder that Ireland needs right now, when the side needs a point away from home to stay on track for qualification, back Jewell to earn it. When it comes to moulding a squad of limited talent into a cohesive unit that could surprise a few big names, back Jewell to mould them. When it comes to having a strong-willed character who is able to stand up and make his side be counted when it matters and to get the job done, back Jewell to do it. He’s made his mistakes, such as the ill-fated time at Sheffield Wednesday when the club was in a downward spiral, but name me a manager on that proverbial list of candidates who hasn’t had his share of bad decisions. If the FAI are looking for a man to fulfil the job they need done by their national coach at the moment, they won’t go much better than appointing Jewell, if they can persuade him into taking the role.

However, it remains to be seen whether Delaney and the men at Merrion Sqaure are willing and able to make such a move, or whether they will once again revert to a cheap and nasty option for manager of the national side (Step forward, John Aldridge). If they genuinely have Irish football and it’s best interests at heart, then moves must be taken, and taken now, to improve the whole landscape of the system currently in place.

Clubs must start taking advantage of better facilities in order to make the UEFA Cup group stages or maybe even make it into the group phase of Champions’ League. Youth tams must start qualifying for major tournaments on a major basis, and there must be a plan for these sides to be competitive in those competitions sooner rather than later. But most importantly right now, the faithful must start to believe in their national side once again.

Why are the players being booed off by their own fans in a half-empty stadium after a draw with Cyprus? Because things are just not working at the moment. Why are we looking for a thid manager in four years? Because things are just not working at the moment. How can we stop this happening again? By making things work now and in the future. Appoint the right man, make the steps that you promised to the fans, the players and the staff and make us into a nation which can be noticed once again on the international stage, not laughed at.

Change needs to happen, and it needs to happen now for Irish football, or else, as RTE columnist David Sheehan put it in the wake of Staunton’s departure this week, John Delaney and his assistants may not survive another fiasco on the scale of Staunton’s departure. Never mind John Delaney, another bad move on the part of the FAI, and it might not be long before Irish football plummets into years, maybe even decades of mediocrity and obscurity.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Ed’s note: In the rush to crucify Rob Styles, predict Jol’s replacement and criticise Manchester United, we tend to forget that there’s more to football than just the Premiership, and indeed, that there’s a lot more to football than just winning and losing.

It’s fair to say that in recent years, the reputation of football as the “beautiful game” has taken somewhat of a battering, owing to a number of different reasons.

The reputations of players is at an all time low, with the likes of Joey Barton, El-Hadji Diouf and Lee Hughes all bringing down the names of many other respectable people within the game with their antics on and off the pitch. The shrouded mystery of the Carlos Tevez and Harry Kewell transfer sagas shows there is little clarity anymore in the game and how people are motivated by money in a way that was rare in times gone by.

Even FIFA, the organising body who is meant to stamp out troublemakers and make the rules clear and apparent, always seem to make things as complicated as possible, with a clear line of corruption running through the group itself, as exposed in Andrew Jennings’ book focusing on bribery within the corporation.

Certainly in recent times, football has allowed itself to come in for plenty of criticism, with many believing the soul of the game is being lost to major-money groups looking for commercial gain rather than sporting development, with the players on the pitch failing to be the role models that were commonplace in the 20th century.

However, despite the sullied nature of the game in the modern era, football always manages to throw up a story every so often that inspires and reminds fans of why we love the game and what it stands for. The unbelievable cup run of fourth division amateurs Calais to the Coupe De France final in 2000 was one for the romantics, while the formation of the likes of FC United, AFC Telford and AFC Wimbledon proves that there is a conscience within a number of fans of the game. However, it has been a long time since football has provided a tale such as that of the Iraqi success in last month’s Asian Cup, and it will be a long time again before we have a fairytale such as this in the game.

The Iraqis went into the competition knowing they were capable of surprising a few people and certainly their ambitions stretched to another quarter-final spot in the competition. However, the likes of Japan, South Korea and the newly introduced Australia stood in their way of victory in the tournament outright. Couple this with the tumultuous circumstances surrounding the build up to the cup, with the team having to train outside of their home country owing to the conflict in the gulf state at the moment, and not many would have given the side a prayer of making significant moves in the tournament.

A 3-1 victory over the star-studded Australians in their second group match set the tone for the rest of the championship. The Iraqis went on to top Group A ahead of the Socceroos, Oman and co-hosts Thailand, before seeing off Vietnam 2-0 in the quarter final, player of the tournament Younis Mahmood scoring both to set up a semi-final with South Korea. The Koreans has somewhat stumbled into the semis, incurring a defeat in the group stages against Bahrain and scraping past Iran in the quarter-final on penalties, but they were still highly fancied to end the Iraqi run in the competition and make their sixth final in 15 competitions.

However, neither side could make the breakthrough, despite chances for both teams to win it in 90 and 120 minutes. So, to penalties, and while the Iraqis confidently slotted home all four of their spot-kicks, Yeom Ki-Hun saw his effort saved by Noor Abbas and then Kim Jung-Woo smacked his effort off the crossbar, sealing a shock victory for the gulf state and putting them into their first ever final.

The only problem was that they were up against Saudi Arabia, probably the standout side in the tournament, along with Japan, who they knocked out in the other semi-final, winning a high quality match 3-2 in the end. Having scored 12 goals on the way to the final, pundits predicted that they would finally be the side to break down the resolute Iraqi defence and go on to claim their fourth title, setting a new record.

Certainly the Saudis created more than the Koreans in the semi, their best chance coming when Yassar Al-Qahtani got into the penalty area, only to see his effort deflected over the crossbar by Bassim Abbas. But despite the chances presented to the Saudis, it was still deadlocked as time pressed on during the match. It was in the final quarter of the match where Iraq pressed for a winner, and in the 71st minute, an Iraqi corner was badly misjudged by Yaser Al Mosaliem, allowing Mahmood to steal in and head home what would ultimately be the winner. His fourth goal of the competition made him joint top scorer, won him the best player award, but most importantly, Iraq held out with aplomb in the last 20 minutes, to secure an improbable, but fully deserved victory.

Cue pandemonium back in Iraq. Thousands took to the street celebrating the team’s victory against the odds, disregarding the potential danger to their own lives, as shown in the aftermath of the win over the Koreans, when 50 people were killed in two separate roadside bomb attacks in the capital, Baghdad. Upon the teams’ return to their home country, Prime Minister Nouri Maliki summed up the situation perfectly: “When they competed with others, none of them considered themselves as belonging to any groups or to any ethnicity, denomination or religion. They belonged only to Iraq, and their only concern was the victory of Iraq.”

Given the circumstances surrounding the team in the lead-up to the tournament, the Iraqi players and fans could barely have expected a moment like this. However, despite the ordeal it was to prepare for the finals and the inability of the players to fully bask in their glory upon their return to their country, all of them were just happy to be at this point, irrespective of how they got there.

A look at the history of the national team prior to the toppling of the Hussein regime reminded players of how lucky they were to even have this opportunity.The Saddam Hussein years in Iraq were marred by stories and events depicting the religious divide in the country, the sectarian acts such as that in Dujail, which eventually cost Saddam his own life, along with the reported torture of thousands of Iraqi men and the alienation of the Shi’ite faith were all commonplace within Saddam’s Iraq. Some of these facets were passed down the line to Saddam’s sons, in particular Uday Hussein, who in the 80′s was made Commissioner of Iraq’s Olympic Committee. This role was then stretched to become the unofficial “leader” of the national football team.

For Uday, failure was not an option, and as a result, any sign of weakness in the players wearing the national shirt resulted in torture, humiliation and severe punishment. Stories have emerged in the aftermath of the death of Uday and the falling of the prior regime about how players who missed good chances in matches would be imprisoned for up to a month for their crimes. How missing a training session because of a family illness or death meant repeated flogging with electric cable and how a missed penalty in a shootout would result in players being forced to take baths in vats of raw sewerage.

How the Iraqi authorities repeatedly managed to trick the FIFA authorities who inspected the country remains a mystery, but the “motivational” actions of Hussein continued unabated for many a year. It’s still a part of their career which haunts any player that was involved,particularly Habab Jaffar, the former Iraqi captain, who suffered persistently at the hands of Hussein and his henchmen for the team’s inconsistent performances. But even after all he’s been through, his biggest regret is not that he ever represented his country, or that he was routinely tortured and imprisoned by Hussein. No, as he said in interviews after the Hussein’s fled, “I wish I were 20 again, so I could show them how I could have played.” It is another testament to the power and allure football can hold, even through it has probably left Jaffar with scars he can never remove.

This is relative in some respect to the country itself. After all that the Iraqi people have had to endure in now what is approaching five years, there are some scars on the people, and on the country itself, which can never be removed from memory and history. Football cannot change history, it can’t take back the pain of losing a loved one, or it can’t give a child back the legs it lost in a car bombing accident, nor will it ever remove this war from the archives in the future and make it seem as if nothing happened.

However, what it can do is alleviate the pain and the hurt and remind the people of Iraq what they can still achieve. It gives people hope, it inspires joy in a time of suffering for many, as shown by the wild celebrations on the street after Iraq’s Asian Cup victory. Ultimately, the joy only lasts briefly, but it is proof that Iraq can still perform and still achieve on a great stage. For many people, it may only be a minor note in the history of a country torn apart in rcent years, but it can bring unbridled happiness at least momentarily for some people.

But there is also another facet that needs to be considered. As much of an emotional fillip this brings to the people of Iraq, the footballing achievements of the team themselves cannot be ignored. The Asian Cup may not be the most prestigious of competitions in the eyes of ourselves, but try telling that to any country who takes part. The likes of Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Australia all send their best possible squads to the championships, in fact one of the reasons Australia switched from the OFC to the AFC was in order to have more competition in higher quality tournaments, such as the Asian Cup. They take it seriously, as does everyone else who takes part, so for Iraq to go and topple Australia, South Korea and Saudi Arabia on their way to victory in the final represents a shock, but proves that there is a genuine football pedigree running through the country. Looking at their past achievements also proves this.

Lest we forget, it was only three years ago that Iraq sent a predominantly Under 23 team to the Olympic games in Athens, and the team again surprised many en route to finishing fourth, defeating Portugal, Costa Rica and Australia on their way to the semi-final, where they were beaten by Paraguay 3-1 in the semi-final, before losing the Bronze medal match narrowly by the single goal to Italy. Despite the lack of medals to bring home, the competition was a big success for Iraq, who weren’t even expected to win a match, let alone make it out of the group stage. It was the foundations for many of the team to go on and achieve bigger and better things in the future, as proven now three years later with the hubris of the Olympic team going on to win the Asian Cup.

Going back even further, the records show how even under the reign of Saddam and the “guidance” of Uday Hussein, Iraq sill achieved to a decent standard in international competition. They are one of only eight Asian countries to ever reach the finals of the World Cup, back in 1986 in Mexico. Although they lost all three games, no side humiliated them, and they could at least return home with their heads held high, saying they had reached a World Cup. Couple this with four consecutive quarter-final appearances in the Asian Cup, up to and including 2007, and it proves that in their own right, Iraq are a decent team on the international stage. But now the aim to get better, and achieve more in order to prove that they are rightly the champions of Asia and fit to represent the country on a global stage.

First of all, Iraq will look to be one of the three Asian sides that will qualify for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing in the final round of qualifying in October and November. Along with this, as current AFC champions, Iraq will compete in the 2009 Confederations Cup against the other continental champions in a vastly profitable competition for the competing teams. Up against the likes of Brazil, the USA and Italy, Iraq will be able to show just how far they have advanced in recent years. The likes of those three teams is certainly a step up, but it will be the sort of teams Iraq will have to encounter if they achieve their ultimate goal: make the 2010 World cup finals.

The route to South Africa is complicated and lengthy in the AFC, and Iraq have to start from scratch, firstly in a two-legged knockout match against Pakistan in October, then onto a four team group stage in which they will have to finish in the top two, before finally entering the group stage with another nine teams, split into two groups of five, with the top two in each group qualifying automatically, while the third placed team in each group makes it into a play-off against one another, with the winner probably facing New Zealand for a place in the World Cup outright.

Iraq will be aiming to get one of the five places on offer for the Asian nations through qualifying, even though they will be up against the big names in the AFC once again, who this time will not underestimate the team’s ability, as may have been the case for some last month. However, Iraq cannot rely on other teams to falter on the way to South Africa, the team has already proven they belong amongst the big names in Asian football, now they need to strengthen and reinforce that position. Therefore, this is the standard and calibre of opponents they will need to play, and beat if they are to reach the big time in international football.

The team is anything from the finished article, and in all honesty, they are still a level beneath the likes of Japan, Australia and South Korea, despite the cup victory, consequently the Lions could be in for a bit of a shock if they get to the business end of AFC qualifying. Couple this with the departure of Jorvan Vieira after his brief spell in charge of the squad and Iraq still have a few things to sort out in preparation for World Cup qualifying, with the issue of security also needing to be addressed, otherwise it could be neutral venues for the Iraqi side, instantly putting them at a disadvantage in preparation for the challenges ahead.

It’s not all good news just yet for the Gulf nation, and plenty of work must be done before they can truly be placed among the top tier of national teams in the Asian region, but certainly they are in a much healthier position than they were a few years ago, certainly they have achieved much more than anyone could have expected.

For now though, the future of the Iraqi team will not concern the people of the country too much, they can still look at the team’s victory in the Asian Cup as a marker and celebrate the joy it has brought to Iraqi lives torn apart by conflict, poverty and disaster. Stories like these have become quite common in football in recent years, as shown by the success story of Croatia in finishing third at France 98 seven short years after a bitter civil war tore apart the Balkan region, also laying claim to the independent state of Bosnia, which itself has healed throughout the years with regeneration schemes in co-operation with the likes of UEFA helping to develop the country, while the national team begins to make itself a contender in European competition. Now with the tale of Iraq and their success, it’s another example of what football can bring to a country and people ravaged by other factors, be what they may.

Who knows, maybe 20 years from now we will be able to talk of how Sudan and Somalia came out of nowhere to take the African Cup of nations or qualified for the World Cup, and what it did for the people of the country, who have also seen grave poverty and war themselves. For them, much like it has been for Iraq in recent times, football will not be the ultimate answer to all the problems in the country. It doesn’t profess to being so, it never has been the case, nor will it be the case, but as the people of Iraq have shown in the aftermath of their country’s Asian Cup victory, football can bring hope and joy to the most desperate and stricken people in the right circumstances. It’s something that seldom happens in any other field than sport, in particular the beautiful game.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News